MotoGP Exclusive interview with Fabio Quartararo “It is certain that I will have a lot of fun because in MotoGP there are the greatest riders”

After two triumphs in CEV Moto3, Fabio Quartararo skated a little in GP with Leopard then Pons, before bouncing back to victory this year with Speed ​​Up. Yamaha has just given him his chance in MotoGP and Fabio is overjoyed. El Diablo is back!

With your good sixth place in qualifying at Silverstone, did you regret the cancellation of the Grand Prix?

“I think all the drivers regretted this cancellation. But there were crashes on Saturday due to aquaplaning in MotoGP. They couldn't brake at all. All the drivers wanted to race, but not in these conditions. It was a real shame because I felt good in the dry and in the rain. »

Was winning the Catalan GP on June 17, then immediately after finishing second in the Assen GP on July 1, a determining factor in your selection by the Petronas Yamaha SIC team in MotoGP?

“I think it was thanks to the results of these two races that I had the opportunity to go to MotoGP, but they also noticed that I was doing good times in the previous races and that I had the pace men in front.

“So yes it was based on the two great races that I managed, but also on all the work that we did during the season. »

By embarking on the great adventure of MotoGP In 2019, don't you regret not doing one more season to try to win the Moto2 World Champion title?

“No, no, I don’t regret it at all. My goal is to move up to MotoGP as quickly as possible, but above all next year Moto2 will change: there will be Triumph engines, electronics, so I will have to get used to another style of racing again. piloting.

“So, as long as you're going to take a leap, you might as well take a big leap, which means knowing everything about MotoGP. »

You will have the satellite motorcycle “B”, that is to say an M1 identical to those driven by Valentino Rossi et Maverick Vinales during the last GP of 2018 in Valencia. Your teammate Franco Morbidelli will have a more advanced “A”. For you, is racing with a “B” positive because it generates less pressure, or more difficult because with a less efficient bike (theoretically)?

“Bike B is much better because I will have less pressure next year. This is a bike I have to learn. It’s already very positive for me to be in MotoGP, so it’s clear that we didn’t ask ourselves the question of bike A or bike B.”

And then Johann Zarco proved that the B bike didn't ride that badly...

“That’s it, exactly!” » (laugh)

You will have Diego Gubellini as chief mechanic (editor's note: he is with Franco Morbidelli at Marc VDS this year, and will be replaced with Franco next year by Ramon Forcada, currently with Maverick Vinales). Do you already know Diego a little?

“I’ve never worked with him before. I only know one person in my future technical team who has already worked with me. But otherwise, I don't know anyone personally. »

Marc Marquez, born February 17, 1993, competed in his first MotoGP Grand Prix on April 7, 2013 in Qatar, at the age of 20. You, born April 20, 1999, will compete in yours at 19 years old. Is your young age an advantage because it gives you more time to get used to the category?

“More than age, I think what is most important is having the ability to adapt quickly to this bike because there are a lot of things that change compared to Moto2. It's going to be difficult but we are confident, even if we know that we will have to work hard to improve each time. »

How do you imagine your 2019 season?

“It is certain that it will be difficult, but it is also certain that we will have a lot of fun because there are the greatest drivers in this category. We'll have to hang in there, but I know it's going to be a fun year during which I'll learn all the little tricks of MotoGP. »

And how do you see the end of the 2018 season in Moto2?

“It is important that I focus on the end of the season because despite everything we are not that far in the Championship, less than 30 points from third. So it's playable.

“And above all, I am much more relaxed since I know my future. Now that it's done, I'm 100% focused on finishing my Moto2 season in the best possible conditions. »

Fabio's career seen by motogp.com / Dorna:

 

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