At the age of 24. Fabio Quartararo is now in his sixth season in MotoGP, where he won the title in 2021 and in which he has always competed on the Yamaha. The Frenchman, whose contract with the Iwata manufacturer expires at the end of 2024, has spent the last two years asking for a reaction from the team, but this has not arrived.
The lack of speed in the M1's flying lap and poor performance in low-grip conditions drove Quartararo to despair last year. The rider from Nice has issued several ultimatums in the search for solutions that could make him reflect on the possibility of renewing the agreement with Yamaha, which expires on December 31st.
The Japanese manufacturer has taken a clear step forward in this sense, with the hiring of technical director Max Bartolini and aerodynamicist Marco Nicotra, both from Ducati. The hope is that this change can reduce the gap between the M1 and the very powerful Ducati.
Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha Factory Racing
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
“There has been a response to the request I made, although perhaps the result of this is still not what I wanted,” Quartararo told Motorsport.com during a break on the final day of testing in Sepang.
“I have already had initial contacts with other brands, but Yamaha will certainly already know this. Now it depends on Yamaha to see what steps it will take. I'm happy with what they've done, but it's a matter of seeing how things develop in the short term,” she continued.
Although Quartararo and Malaysian test leader Pecco Bagnaia were separated by just eight tenths, the Frenchman highlighted the significant changes that Yamaha has made in its approach, which aims to return to winning ways.
Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha Factory Racing
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
“There has been a big change at Yamaha,” he added. “It's clear that I don't like being so far away and when I go into the garage I want to do it with a smile. But the way we're working now is much more aggressive. In the past, it was said in the paddock that Yamaha engineers were the first to go to the hotel. They are working really hard at the moment. We have new people who have arrived and who come from a manufacturer that is winning and is now much further ahead (Ducati, ed)”.
The final pre-season tests will be held in Lusail on Monday and Tuesday next week, before the season will begin on the weekend of March 10, again in Qatar.
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