Fabio Quartararo was one of the standouts of the day in MotoGP by securing direct passage to Q2, and he didn’t even need to use the new and highly anticipated engine, as it only lasted… a lap and a half.
The French rider from the Japanese manufacturer explained that there was an unexpected problem and something happened, forcing #20 to park the bike that had it: ‘I only managed to do a lap and a half with the engine. We had a problem with the engine, so we won’t use it anymore’ he began, as quoted by Crash, before explaining that he doesn’t know what happened, and showing conviction that he won’t use it again in Sepang:
– We tried the new engine, as you could see with the long exhaust, and we had a problem; we broke the engine. I don’t know if it’s broken or not, but at least it stopped on the straight and we couldn’t repair it for this weekend.
Quartararo still had a very good performance with his bike, largely due to the changes made by the team to the bike, especially in terms of electronics: ‘So, to be honest, since Thailand, but actually we’re changing today the way we manage the electronics, which for me is still the old base, but as usual, like Yamaha used to be’.
Then the rider has to adapt, as he explained, while at the same time, since he has less “control,” the possibility of crashes is higher: ‘So, we’re riding in a completely different style. For me, it’s difficult to adapt because we changed a lot in the electronics and I still have to remember some things because we’re controlling the bike much less. So if I forget, it’s much easier to have a highside. I think today I was riding well’.
And he added, remembering that this year has been rich in going through all qualifying: ‘We’ve been talking about it for a long time, but we never took the step because it’s very big. But what do I have to lose? Maybe start in Q1? I’m used to this since this year.” The focus is clear: “But what I want is to prepare for next year, I want to feel as good as possible and try to see if we can do the best possible’.