Before the Japanese Grand Prix, Yamaha was on the rise. The Japanese brand had managed to improve its feeling in Misano, in the last official test for the 2024 riders, and this allowed it to obtain good performances in the Emilia Romagna and Indonesian Grands Prix, especially thanks to Fabio Quartararo, who put in some of the best performances of the season at the wheel of the M1.
But the Japanese GP, home race for the Iwata team, was a return to reality. On Friday, neither the “Diablo” nor Alex Rins managed to get into Q2 straight away in practice, as was the former’s goal. The Frenchman finished in 14th place in the afternoon session at Motegi, with a time of 1’44″401, 965 thousandths from Brad Binder’s best time and just under two tenths from Marco Bezzecchi, tenth. The Spaniard, on the other hand, his, he finished in 20th place with a 1’44″950, over half a second behind the KTM.
After Friday’s session, the two Yamaha riders explained the situation and attributed their bad day to the problems that the Japanese bike continues to have, despite some improvements: the lack of grip, especially at the rear, which is felt especially when conditions are the worst, as in the case of the track owned by Honda.
“We’re back to reality,” summed up a resigned Quartararo, aware that there are still some difficulties to overcome with the fourth bike of the championship, according to the general constructors’ classification. “When the lack of grip comes from the track, we struggle. We can’t stop the motorbike. Rear grip is terrible.”
Rins, who was not at all happy with the bad day, expressed the same feelings as his boxing partner, and also highlighted some of the problems that are usually reported on the Yamaha: “We have a lot of problems with lack of grip, and I don’t know how manage them. When braking it lifts a lot from the rear. I haven’t been this disappointed with the box in many days.”
“We realized that by driving behind Honda, we are a step behind in terms of acceleration. We’re doing something wrong. We can’t find traction when we release the brakes and open the throttle, and we can’t find grip in the lean,” said the Spaniard about the current situation.
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