This Sunday, September 18, 2022, fabio quartararo answered questions from journalists from the Motorland Aragón circuit at the end of the Aragón Grand Prix.
The French driver, reigning world champion, only made a few hundred meters, surprised by the escape of the Honda Marc Márquez before hitting her. He only suffered a few superficial burns and leg pain.
As usual, we report here the words of fabio quartararo without the slightest formatting, even if it is partially translated (vouvoiement for English, tutoiement for French).
Fabio, how did you experience the accident from the inside?
fabio quartararo : " I don't really remember exactly, but a lot of drivers made a few mistakes and I went wide. And there it was: Marc turned, he slipped and I hit the back of his bike. There you go, that stopped very early »
Do you have burns on your chest?
« Yes! »
Did the bike do this to you?
« No, I have the suit that opened and I scraped against the floor. »
Are you already thinking about the championship or are you still in shock?
« No, not in shock, it was a fall and unfortunately we couldn't do anything. It's like that. Now, there is no point thinking about the championship in a situation where in any case we will score zero points. The others do their race and we'll see later, but in any case it's sure that it's painful, especially on a circuit where we knew we had difficulty and there we score zero. But that's how it is ! »
Marc Márquez came to see you?
« Well, I just left the clinic, but there's no reason to come see me. »
Racing incident?
« It's a racing incident, so there's nothing to add. »
Are you nevertheless happy to come out of it without major injuries, because it could have gone badly?
« Yes, there is always a little positive, and that's it. You have to stay positive, and given the fall, even if I didn't see it and if I don't really remember how I fell, only having burns and a little pain in my leg, I think that We're doing well. »
What happened after the fall?
« (Laughs) After the fall, the commissioner hit a scooter and I suffered a second fall (laughs). And it was pretty fast but luckily I hadn't taken my helmet off. But yes, the commissioner hit another scooter head-on, quite quickly. Luckily I didn't get anything in that fall and everything I got was from the first fall. I think the commissioner is having some pain. »
What exactly happened when you touched Marc?
« Many drivers made small mistakes. Marc turned very well but slipped and as I had better traction I didn't expect it. I touched his rear and I don't remember exactly what the situation was, but it's a shame it was right at the third corner. »
If we ignore this fall and the championship, can we say that Aragón was better for you this year than in previous years?
« Yes ! And also because, more than the results, I have always been fast but never consistent, whereas I was really very satisfied with my FP4 because I was very consistent and fast. So apart from the racing it's been a positive weekend and I'm really looking forward to going to some tracks we haven't been to for a long time. Japan is one of my favorite circuits, Thailand too, so I'm going to push as hard as I can to give my best there. »
Considering the race times, what result did you think was possible?
« I think a top 5 result would have been a very good result. We know we're still struggling in the race and small 48s are really fast laps in the race, but maybe a podium, group 3, 4 or 5 was something possible. We are fast in practice but in the race it is always difficult, but we could have fought for 3, 4, 5 or 6. »
The weather forecast isn't exactly great for Japan and there is a small risk of cancellations. Would this be an opportunity for you?
« I don't know (laughs). If it continues like this, maybe it's a good thing. Japan is a track that I love, so hopefully we can race there, because I feel a lot of riders haven't been to Japan, like Bastianini who has never raced in MotoGP there. But I think Japan can be a good circuit for us, even if there is a lot of acceleration because there is also a lot of braking, which is our strong point. »
With four races in five weeks, your injuries won't handicap you?
« I just have a little pain in my hip but it's just from the fall and it will be OK in three days. The only problem will be the torso. »
Results of Qualifying 1 of the Aragón MotoGP Grand Prix:
Classification credit: MotoGP.com
