Maverick Viñales is one of the current riders in MotoGP, and his performance is explained by a cocktail of factors, among which a notable change in both diet and physical preparation stands out. The 29-year-old Spanish driver, who in the last GP of the Americas broke a three-year drought without tasting victory, admits in conversation with EL PAÍS that he is going hungry in order to refine his set-up to unusual extremes. “The hardest thing about diets is the first few weeks. Then the stomach gets smaller and you can feel a little hungry, but the body pulls,” explains the man from Roses, fourth in Friday practice at the French GP taking place this weekend. “In MotoGP, and this applies to any top-level athlete, it is about making a daily effort. Sometimes I am hungry, yes, but if the result is to win races, I would be hungry all my life,” he admits with a smile.
Viñales has decided to take one step back to take two steps forward. “Convincing an athlete of this is not easy, but it has certainly turned out well,” says Lluís Capdevila, his physical trainer. The Aprilia rider, who measures 1.71 meters, has lost five kilos in four months, from weighing between 68 and 69 kilos in the last race of 2023 in Valencia to staying between 63 and 64 for his debut in 2024. His index fat is around 6%, very close to the limit of the human body. “It is impossible to lose more fat, he has less than an elite cyclist,” highlights the specialist, who has collaborated with him since he was 16 years old. The premise that both agreed on in December was to find the perfect balance so as not to lose performance, but to lighten the load on the bike and the body.
“We realized that with two races each weekend, we didn’t need so much muscle, but rather greater agility and power, to improve explosiveness,” explains Capdevila. Viñales was so strong that he had enough energy for a third test, and the inevitable weight of so much muscle could be a burden on the characteristics of the Italian machine: “We understood that it was not the way to get the most out of the bike, especially with the Aprilia,” says the pilot. The recipe to lose weight was based on two components: stop training with maximum weights in the gym and give another twist to the diet with the help of Saioa Segura, nutritionist at the CAR of Sant Cugat del Vallés.
One of Viñales’ biggest inspirations in this change has been his garage partner, Aleix Espargaró who has been one of the most extreme drivers in physical and nutritional aspects for years. “We take the preparation to the absolute limit. “I have tried many things, but I am no longer able to lose more weight without losing strength,” says the oldest driver on the grid, who at 1.80 tall has always been very aware of the burden that his size represents for a racing motorcycle. “It is very noticeable, these bikes are almost perfect, and less mass equals greater speed,” adds the one from Granollers, who estimates the loss on the track at up to one tenth per acceleration, in addition to the impact that two or three kilos less can have on the best conservation of the tires.
Ramon Forcada, one of the most experienced technicians in the paddock, assumes the importance even knowing that weight is not the most influential factor. “Nutrition is important because motorcycles have become much more physical today. The pilot must be muscular, have physical background and, ideally, lose as much weight as possible, since he is always welcome. It is undeniable that speed on a motorcycle is a consequence of acceleration, and acceleration depends on weight.”
The emergence of specialists, from trainers to nutritionists, including psychologists, has transformed the racing paradigm. “The goal now is to take all the positive aspects of each area and cancel out all the negative ones. It’s like with the technical part of the motorcycle: if you win a lot in something, you can lose in another point, and it’s about finding the optimal balance,” Forcada illustrates. All of this translates into very specific guidelines adapted to each pilot. Strictly necessary food and calories are ingested according to the level of each effort, and provisioning is constant. Viñales, for example, requires eating after 40 minutes of constant performance to maintain his optimal level of performance. Communication between the pilot and his team of specialists is constant and coordinated, so that all elements are directed towards the same specific objective: victory.
“If we saw that all this didn’t work, I’m already telling you that I would be the first to start eating like a beast,” confesses Maverick. His diet is super clean, similar to that of any elite athlete. No sweets and ultra-processed foods, although he eats a little bit of everything, but in small quantities. What he misses most is a drink of Coca-Cola. “I haven’t tried it for four years, but I won’t leave anything behind to try to win here,” he concludes. “The important thing is that the athlete feels strong, that he doesn’t have to think about anything other than the race. The physical part should not condition his performance, but rather fully free his mind,” Capdevila emphasizes.
You can follow The USA Print in Facebook and xor sign up here to receive our weekly newsletter.
_
