Quartararo: Yamaha has "complete package" in MotoGP now
Fabio Quartararo believes Yamaha now has "a complete package" in MotoGP following his commanding Italian Grand Prix victory at Mugello last Sunday.
The Frenchman qualified on pole for the 23-lap Mugello race and fended off early resistance from Pramac's Johann Zarco following a lap-two crash for leader Francesco Bagnaia to go on to dominant for his third win of the year.
This came in spite of the sizable top speed disadvantage Yamaha is carrying in 2021, but marks the second track this year – Qatar included – characterised by a long straight and expected to be a Ducati stronghold where Yamaha has triumphed.
A key update for Yamaha at Mugello was the introduction of its front holeshot device, which meant Quartararo – who now leads the championship by 24 points - only lost one position at the start of last Sunday's race.
When asked by Autosport if he felt Yamaha now has a complete package, he said: "Yes, I think we have a complete package.
Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha Factory Racing
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
"I think that, OK, the top speed is not the best but we have won in two tracks that actually [suited to] Ducatis.
"Everyone said the Ducati [would be dominant] in Qatar, the Ducati [would be dominant] here. But actually, I think no one expected to have one Yamaha, one KTM and Suzuki on the podium today.
"I think what we missed was the front [start] device because our starts were terrible and we improved a lot.
"So, I think that for one lap first of all the top speed is not so important and I think for the race I've taken the confidence that even if we don't have the top speed we can manage without the top speed.
"But our bike is going extremely good, I have a really good feeling on the front. And at the end there's not many tracks where there's a long straight, so we will see in Barcelona I was also really good there."
Teammate Maverick Vinales endured a tough race from 13th on the grid following a controversial qualifying.
Recovering to eighth in the race, Vinales blamed his troubles on his choice of the medium front tyre.
"I really thought the result would be totally different because it's a track I like, a track where I feel good," Vinales said.
"Somehow after FP1 I lost the feeling. The only thing I changed from FP1 to FP2 is the front tyre, I just went to the medium and then that started the problems.
"So, I don't know why we didn't try the soft front again. So, I think we didn't pay enough attention to that because in FP1, the first touch was fantastic, I did 1m47.1s in just six laps.
"So, basically looks like I lost a lot of turning. So, we need to check, we need to analyse.
"In one way it's difficult because I make a bad result but in the other way it's positive because we have data from FP1 to understand why.
"This is the most important thing. We have the data to analyse and we have one guy in our team who is winning."
Related video
Binder keeps KTM MotoGP ride through to 2024
Rins brands recent MotoGP crashes “not normal”
Why Honda and Yamaha have been left behind in MotoGP's new era
The once all-conquering Japanese manufacturers are going through a difficult period in MotoGP this season. With Suzuki quitting, Honda struggling to get near the podium and Yamaha only enjoying success courtesy of Fabio Quartararo, Japanese manufacturers have been left in the dust by their European counterparts. Key paddock figures explain why.
Who is Valentino Rossi’s newest MotoGP star?
Valentino Rossi’s protégés stole the show at Assen as Francesco Bagnaia stormed to victory to arrest a recent barren run. But it was the rider in second, on Bagnaia’s old bike, who had all eyes on him. Securing his and the VR46 team’s first MotoGP podium, Marco Bezzecchi has all the characteristics that made his mentor special
How Quartararo is evoking an absent MotoGP great in 2022
OPINION: Fabio Quartararo has seized control of the 2022 MotoGP world standings after another dominant victory as his nearest rivals faltered. And he is very much heading towards a second championship echoing how the dominator of the last decade achieved much of his success
The human importance of Marquez’s latest enforced MotoGP absence
OPINION: Marc Marquez will likely sit out the remainder of the 2022 MotoGP season to undergo a fourth major operation on the right arm he badly broke in 2020. It is hoped it will return him to his brilliant best after a tough start to the season without a podium to his name. But it’s the human victory that will far outweigh any future on-track success he may go on to have
Why Ducati holds all the power in its MotoGP rider dilemma
OPINION: The French Grand Prix looks to have made Ducati’s decision on its factory team line-up simpler, as Enea Bastianini stormed to his third win of the campaign and Jorge Martin crashed out for a fifth time in 2022. But, as Ducati suggests to Autosport, it remains in the strongest position in a wild rider market
The seismic aftershock left by Suzuki's decision to leave MotoGP
Suzuki's sudden decision to leave the MotoGP World Championship at the end of the season has acted as a stirring element in a market that had already erupted. Autosport analyses what this means for the grid going into 2023
How the real Ducati began to emerge in MotoGP’s Spanish GP
Ducati’s 2022 MotoGP bike has had a tough start to life and the expected early-season title charge from Francesco Bagnaia did not materialise. But the Spanish Grand Prix signalled a turning point for both the GP22 and Bagnaia, as the 2021 runner-up belatedly got his season underway after a straight fight with Fabio Quartararo
How Honda's praise for its 2022 MotoGP bike has turned into doubt
In a little over two months, Honda has gone from setting the pace in MotoGP testing with its new RC213V prototype to being at a crossroads - caused by the discrepancy in its riders' feedback. After a Portuguese GP that underwhelmed, serious questions are now being asked of Honda in 2022