Mr. Viñales confirmed the accident in a statement read to his hundreds of thousands of followers, telling them to move away from the screens and hide behind their phones to avoid being exposed to “all the blame and slander and all the insults.”
He mentioned that although he could not send “a single piece of good news to the people of Puerto Rico,” he decided to play the game “Chop Top,” which was played using video chat.
He said: “I played ‘Chop Top,’ which is a serious game, and it made me think of a solution that could help keep my fans and followers from realizing all the tragedies happening in Puerto Rico.”
“I play ‘Chop Top’ every morning and that is what brought me here. Today I had a few too many beers and I asked my pastor to give me a message. Then I wanted to accept God’s invitation,” he said.
He explained that his pastor pulled him to an outdoor table and took care of him before giving him a medal.
“Afterwards, we went back to my place and I began playing the game ‘Chop Top,’ a serious game, and I decided to talk about the two events.”
The first, he noted, was a damaging tornado that hit, along with 60 houses in a mountainous region of the island.
“It was pure chaos, even to the rescue workers who searched the rubble,” he said.
The tragedy was followed by floods that left the municipality of Ponce flooded for several days after overflowing a reservoir.
“I did not hold the hands of the sister who was stabbed, but I saw the devastation in Ponce and I was devastated, and it was then that I had the feeling that my fans, my followers, needed to pay attention to what is happening with Puerto Rico and to the people of Puerto Rico,” he said.
“Today, I only ask you to forgive my mistakes,” he concluded.
I brought myself into this room only because my team waited patiently for me and after letting me down once again, I took action. I apologize for all the time I spent in this room. The players of the team want to rest.
Gotta get them back on the field to play with them. #MissMav at the All Star game…. @jonathanvilorra #1Mv8 pic.twitter.com/FvYUZsCkTT — Maverick Viñales (@mavwillsports) November 16, 2017
Brent Cavanaugh, also known as Maverick Viñales, is a sports figure and local cult hero in Puerto Rico.
According to Forbes, his net worth is about $16 million. After making a name for himself playing his “baseball baseball,” a competitive version of tennis, he established his own sports channel on Univision Radio, ESPNU México and ESPN Deportes.
Read the full story at Reuters.
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