Between Andrea Dovizioso and Fabio Quartararo, a fundamental debate opened in the public square of Portimao on what the Yamaha needs to regain its former glory. For the Italian, whose results will modestly be described as disappointing, he must work on the search for grip, a strategy which fits perfectly with the philosophy of the brand's engineers who have never really worked on their engine. For the Frenchman, reigning World Champion and the only one to avoid a total collapse of the tuning fork brand, it is precisely this engine that must be boosted and, therefore, Iwata's men must get out of their zone of comfort. The two men oppose and even respond to each other. Because Dovizioso has done it again…
When taking stock of the first day of Portuguese Grand Prix, passed on a Portimao track watered by showers, Andrea Dovizioso had stated that Yamaha would find the solution to his problems by looking for grip. After reading these words, fabio quartararo replied: “ I don't agree with Dovizioso. We need power, not grip. I know this bike very well and I am convinced that the problem is just pure power. You can ask me twenty times, I will always give the same answer ».
Andrea Dovizioso persists and signs: “ I think 90% of Yamaha riders need more grip«
End of the exchange? Nope. Dovizioso returned to the charge after the French World Champion took his position: “ Fabio is currently the only rider capable of going fast on the Yamaha without grip on the rear wheel », says the man who has yet to prove anything on an M1. “ From my point of view, this is due to his riding style and the fact that he has never ridden another motorcycle. He is used to exploiting the potential of the bike as it is and in terms of corner entry, steering, center of corners, he has great potential because the front works well »
And he ends on Motoracing : " In my opinion, his driving style is a bit unusual. That's why I always refer to grip, because I think 90% of Yamaha riders need more grip. Fabio doesn't say anything bad, he just doesn't know the grip because he's never tried anything else. It's normal. In his place I too would ask for more power ».
By developing with conviction his way of developing the Yamaha, Andrea Dovizioso maintains the kind of cacophony that will keep Japanese engineers in limbo. By the way, by praising an efficient riding style with a motorcycle that is not, Andrea Dovizioso makes a real false compliment to the tricolor. The Italian especially signals that he does not want to see Yamaha hit by the syndrome Marc Marquez which is rife at Honda. Or see the appearance of an M1 which only suits one driver of the brand, whose only fault, incidentally, is to win.
By crushing Dovizioso, But also Morbidely, fabio quartararo is disturbing and it should be noted that the two Italians always do everything not to offend the Japanese engineers in their speeches, even though they are delivered from the back of the practice timesheets or race rankings. Meanwhile, the European staff in the box say they are making the renewal of the tricolor a priority. A challenge, because this type of questioning of its legitimacy, with this type of reminder of a sort of birthright by mentioning “ that he has never ridden another motorcycle », which implies that he does not have enough technical background, could definitely encourage the World Champion to pack his bags soon.
FP1/FP2 results of the MotoGP Portuguese Grand Prix at the Algarve International Autodrome in Portimão:
Classification credit: MotoGP.com
