Jorge Lorenzo made his first pre-season outing of the 2026 season at Sepang this week as he went trackside to help MotoGP legend Tech3 rider Maverick Vinales.
Three-time MotoGP champion Lorenzo Agreed with Vinyls Last November, his Spanish compatriot became a career coach. Vinales sought Lorenzo’s help in physical, tactical and technical matters after his 2025 season fell through after injury.
After Vinales joined, he promised quickly on the RC16 Tech3 Two years on the factory KTM In the year Contract through 2025. But the 31-year-old returned before fully recovering, after breaking his shoulder during qualifying for the German Grand Prix.
It marked the first major injury of Viñales’ career and ultimately forced him to sit out a total of eight grands prix between rounds 11 and 21. But Vinales put any lingering concerns over his shoulders to bed at the 2026 Sepang test, as he once again showed plenty of speed in the RC16.
Jorge Lorenzo Pedro Acosta feels Maverick Vinales is the top KTM rider in 2026
Factory KTM star Pedro Acosta And Tech3 ace Vinales is eighth and ninth on the overall timesheets at the 2026 Sepang test, with personal best lap times of 1:57.116 and 1:57.126. But all was not rosy behind the scenes in Malaysia as Lorenzo saw some “tension”.
Read more: Everything you need to know about Maverick Vinales from career stats to net worth
Lorenzo believes there was “tension” between Acosta and Vinales at Sepang, as the former fears the latter will be a stronger rider with Lorenzo’s help in 2026. Their rivalry is also growing. Vinales is set to replace Acosta at KTM in 2027..
“There’s tension because they see that they’re on the same level,” Lorenzo said. Duralvita. “Pedro knows that Maverick will get my help and get stronger and Maverick has a lot of respect for Pedro.
“So there’s tension, the relationship isn’t the same. I mean, Maverick doesn’t have the same relationship with (Brad) Binder and (Ine) Bastianini as it does with Pedro. As expected, there’s a little tension with Pedro.”
KTM’s plan to replace Pedro Acosta with Maverick Vinales adds another layer to their competitiveness
KTM is said to have already told Vinales that they will promote it from Tec3 in 2027. MotoGP seasonThe Austrian team is thought to have lost hope of Acosta signing a new contract. The information is increasing. Acosta is set to sign with Ducati for 2027..
Read more: Everything you need to know about Pedro Acosta from money to girlfriend
Their crossing of paths will add another dimension to the growing rivalry between Vinales and Acosta in 2026. The former will want to show KTM that he can fulfill his role as team leader at the age of 21.
Acosta and Viñales sit on 98 and 69 points through 10 rounds in 2025 as the top two KTM riders, before the latter suffered a shoulder injury in round 11 of last year. The 2025 season was Acosta’s second year on the KTM RC16 and Vinales’ first.
While Acosta missed out on his first Grand Prix podium of 2025 at round 12 of the Czech GP, Viñales also came close to making it to the race in Qatar at round four. A A tire pressure violation removed Vinales from a P2 finish in the 2025 Qatar GPAs Acosta inherited the P8.
