Alex Rins: “Final two rounds are crucial for us”

Alex Rins says the final two rounds of the 2025 MotoGP season will be “crucial” for Yamaha as the team looks to confirm key set-up directions for 2026.

After a best weekend of the season in Australia, Rins dropped outside the MotoGP top ten again at Sepang, where Yamaha battled a recurrence of its grip issues on hot and slippery surfaces.

“It looks like when grip levels are low and temperatures are high, it affects us more than the others,” said Rins, who nonetheless made direct entry into Qualifying 2 for the third race in a row.

A return to Europe for this weekend’s penultimate round at Portimao will erase the heat factor, with temperatures expected in the low 20s and the possibility of rain.

That leaves Rins and Yamaha to focus on improving rear grip while gathering valuable data for 2026, when the new V4 prototype is expected to replace the inline-four M1.

“After a tough weekend in Malaysia and now heading into Portimao, I remain optimistic,” said Rins, whose best result at the Portuguese circuit is fourth place for Suzuki in 2022.

“It's a track that I always enjoy because of its unique characteristics. The team and I are continuing to adapt.

“These final two rounds are crucial for us to confirm key set-up directions before we fully shift our focus to 2026 testing."

Rins is currently just 19th in the world championship but only four points behind Pramac’s Jack Miller, currently the second-best M1 rider after Fabio Quartararo (ninth).