For his second season in Moto2, Fabio moved from the Kalex to the Speed Up, in a different team and with long trial and error during winter testing for the choice of suspensions. We shouldn't expect miracles, but the information recorded in Qatar will be very useful for the rest of the season.
As he told us himself same here, Fabio left with moderate hopes at Losail, the aim being mainly to work on the bike to improve it for the future. The expected results were not spectacular, and El Diablo qualified sixteenth to finish twentieth in the race, and his new teammate Danny Kent seventeenth. We met Fabio this Wednesday during the press conference presenting the French Grand Prix.
Before the Qatar race, tests were carried out with the Speed Up equipped with WP suspensions, then KYB, and finally the first test at Losail with the Öhlins. Was there enough time for you to make the machine efficient in Öhlins, or was it still lacking a little bit of development?
“We still lacked time because we only really started tuning during FP1. So it was quite complicated. But for the next Argentine Grand Prix we will start on a much better basis than that of Qatar. »
You have a new teammate, Danny Kent. With him, do you have a relatively similar riding style, and can you help each other in fine-tuning the machine?
“No, we don’t really have the same style, so it’s quite complicated. But I'm able to adjust my bike with my engineers, and it's already much better. »
Regarding the upcoming Grands Prix, do you already have recorded data, for example for suspensions, for Argentina and Texas?
“It’s different because last year they had WP suspensions. It was something else entirely and didn't work exactly the same. »
In Moto2, the number of testing days per year is limited to 10. Does this pose a problem for the development of the machine at the start of the season?
“No, I really don’t think so, because 10 days is a long time. Since I've been in the Grand Prix, I don't think all the teams have completed the entire 10 days of testing. I think the 10 day limit was set to contain teams that really have a lot of money. But practically no team does all 10 days a year. »
After the Argentinian and Texas Grands Prix, we will return to Europe. From Jerez onwards, can we expect more spectacular progress?
“I think that already from Argentina things will be much better. The team is really starting to know me in terms of engine braking, in terms of my style. There will be improvement. »
Photos © Fabio Quartararo Personal and French GP
