He arrives at Motegi as a world leader, but his dominance is now being questioned: Fabio Quartararo has no more margin for error and the Japanese Grand Prix can be key in terms of the world championship. The Yamaha rider is well aware of this, as he is continuing to fight against a Ducati army and Aleix Espargaro’s Aprilia fierce and eager to take the crown from him.
The fight for the world championship restarts as early as Friday free practice, where the two official Desmosedici GPs immediately made things clear. But the feat will not be easy for Pecco Bagnaia, who has to contend with a Quartararo determined not to be dethroned. “El Diablo” in fact closed the only session on Friday with the third time, only 49 thousandths behind the leader Jack Miller.
Where an engine is needed, Quartararo loses ground against his opponents, but once again the driver is shown with one of the best rhythms. However, he does not appear particularly satisfied: “It was intense, but it went well. Our pace is not bad, but the margin that others have compared to us is better, because I went to the limit, we did my best. Looking at the time attacks, we are at the limit. Maybe we will be able to improve a bit, but the others set the time on the third lap, they are superior and honestly they did something really nice ”.
This situation raises some concern in the box of # 20, which will try to take advantage of any errors on the part of Ducati, aware of the fact that beating them on the technical front will be almost impossible: “I’m looking for Ducati, but they made mistakes. . I saw well but I expected it. We are in clear technical difficulty with respect to Ducati; conquering this title is the biggest goal of my life. This eventual defeat, however, bothers me and motivates me at the same time ”.
Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha Factory Racing
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
However, it will be important to keep motivation high, but also concentration. Making a mistake is not allowed, but judging by the performances of others, the defense of the title becomes more and more difficult: “It’s difficult, because you know you are doing your best and it is never enough. You can do anything you want, but it’s never enough, so it’s hard, but we have to keep doing it until the end, until it’s over. “
“The new engine still does not make a difference” continues Quartararo, speaking of the Yamaha innovations brought to the Misano tests. The engine, however, will only arrive in 2023. “It will help, not a little, but at the moment it is not just about the engine. There are many things that make a difference: they have a different level of aerodynamics than us, the acceleration and also the handling, their bike is really perfect. So it will be tough in the last five races, but we won’t give up. “
The Frenchman arrived at Motegi with a desire for redemption after last Sunday’s terrible crash in Aragon, but in FP1 he had to deal with the abrasion on his chest, which at first slowed him down: “I had a little of tensions at first, because I forgot about the abrasion, but then I adapted. It’s sunny for Sunday, so we need to figure out which tires to use. But I’m ready “.
#MotoGP #Quartararo #clear #difficulty #compared #Ducati