Fabio Quartararo arrives at the Portuguese GP without knowing if the Yamaha will be competitive on the Portimão circuit, where he has nevertheless shone in the past.
fabio quartararo He's gotten used to it by now: only after the first practice session will he be able to get a clearer idea of the Yamaha's potential at the Portimão circuit this weekend. The Japanese bike has indeed proven particularly capricious this season, capable of offering the Frenchman enough performance to allow him to come out on top and secure pole position or a podium finish, just as it can be unruly and extremely difficult to ride.
The overseas tour was a perfect illustration of this, since in Japan, Quarterly believed that Yamaha was "very, very far away"before finding himself in particularly difficult situations in Indonesia, where the other drivers of the brand seemed more comfortable. At the following GP in Australia, he was able to secure pole position but couldn't capitalize on it in the race, even finishing 11th on Sunday.
Two weeks ago, in Malaysia, he proved to be effectivequalifying fourth and securing two top-five finishes in the race. These results have been a rollercoaster, fluctuating depending on the M1's grip and tire wear, which remains a question mark before each Grand Prix.
Quarterly He knows he has already been dominant on the Portimão circuit in the past, notably with a victory in 2021 and then in 2022, but his performance has been more inconsistent in the last two years, leaving doubt for now about what he will be able to do this weekend.
“We’re back in Europe for the last two rounds, and Portimão is the next stop. It’s quite a unique circuit with all its elevation changes, and it’s clearly different from the tracks we’ve ridden recently. So I’m curious to see how the bike will perform here and how the tires will react this weekend. I really like this circuit, so we’ll do our best. As always, I’ll give it 100%, and I hope we can finish this season with some good results over the next two weeks.” did he declare.
