A year ago Maverick Viñales was running against oblivion.
After arriving at Yamaha in 2017 as the only rider capable of defeating Marc Márquez, of late he had become frustrated and his career was in jeopardy.
The Japanese brand, with Fabio Quartararo as the new star, could choose him or Valentino Rossi this 2021 and if he did not renew, what would his future be?
Luckily for Viñales, they offered him a new contract.
And although last season ended sad - only one victory and three podiums - winter came and, with it, joy.
"In a year my life has changed a lot and it has become the life I always dreamed of. I married the best girl in the world and we are waiting for our little Nina," he recently explained on his social networks.
Viñales, a sensitive pilot, perhaps the most sensitive of pilots, is now another man and, in the same way, another pilot.
He has not returned to the adolescent glow of his MotoGP appearance, he has reached maturity.
Many defeats, many regrets, many doubts later, he has done it.
Four years after his last victory in the inaugural race of the World Cup, Viñales won again this Sunday in Qatar and presented his candidacy for the title.
On a circuit with a very long straight, ideal for the top speed of the Ducati, he showed that he will be able to compete on any stage and that the Yamaha, now yes, is once again an aspiring motorcycle.
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