Currently struggling with a Yamaha struggling to get close to the leaders, Fabio Quartararo points to his team's timid progress since the start of the season, citing the upcoming important deadlines on the MotoGP calendar as a challenge for Yamaha.
Asked about the evolution of the Yamaha M1 in his press conference before the MotoGP Indonesian Grand Prix, Quartararo made the following observation: “I think the most important step we took this year was the Barcelona test in 2024. So, of course, we made some improvements, but we saw that the best moments we had were at the beginning of the year. The first three races: Le Mans, Jerez and Silverstone. Since then, we've really struggled. But like I said, I want to focus on myself and try to improve as a driver.”, he confided. He points here to the series of three Grand Prix in which he took pole position. He only reached the podium in the main race in Jerez (Spain).
He specifies: “CThis season, we haven't really made any big steps. We changed the aerodynamics a little, we changed the engine twice, but we can see our top speed is still very low." Beyond this persistent top speed deficit and the lack of real progress over the past few months, the future of the Yamaha project as a whole is not reassuring for Fabio Quartararo at the moment. While last November's Barcelona test set the tone for 2025, the Iwata factory is still far from the target set by the Nice-based rider for 2026. "Potentially, the 2026 project will be the V4. But the potential of the V4 is still a long way, for me, from the inline 4. We know that the project has only just begun, and that there is still a lot of work to be done. But for now, the potential of our bike is higher than that of the V4."
Personally, the Nice resident is setting his expectations for next winter's tests. "I want to have the most competitive bike possible for the Malaysian tests. We know that the Thailand tests are the moment when we'll have our final bike. There's no time to really bring things back from the tests to the race. So, they're the ones who really have to manage to bring the best bike possible for the tests.".
However, he says the atmosphere within his own clan remains positive. "My team, they do the best. My mechanics, they work really well. My engineer, my chief mechanic, they do their best to give me the best possible feeling. But they're not the ones who have to develop the bike. They're not the ones who have to release a new engine. They're not the ones who have to deliver the performance. So the atmosphere is good. Then, with certain people, it's definitely a little more tense. But I know who I have to spend the most time with in the box. And the atmosphere is good.".
Fabio Quartararo in Japan © Yamaha MotoGP
