The Argentine Grand Prix will be marked by the suspension of the day on Friday, but for Fabio Quartararo, the memory goes further, when in 2018 he hit rock bottom as a Moto2 rider and, from there, resurfaced to become MotoGP world champion in just three courses.
“What I have lived in recent years is like a dream, from 2018 to now we have gone from being in a very bad moment to being champions. That race, Moto2 in 2018, was one of the most difficult of my life, the worse, but it was a turning point and now I can laugh about it because I’m here after having won a MotoGP World Championship”.
Regarding the delay of the plane that has left many teams without part of their material, Fabio clarified that Yamaha has not blamed the problem.
“We have everything, but it’s a shame, and we cross our fingers so that everything from the others arrives, it’s going to be a challenge for the mechanics, they’re going to have a lot of work. Saturday is going to be a long day, although in reality we are only going to lose a session,” he said.
The Frenchman arrives in Argentina after his great performance in Indonesia, where he finished second.
“It was very important for me when we got to Mandalika they had changed the asphalt and the rear tire, we didn’t know what to expect and basically we were fast in the dry, with a good pace, but with the rain everything could change, the grip was crazy, it took time Realizing that I could run very fast. Basically, although there was no grip, the bike worked the same as in the dry, the track had good grip conditions, but we have to keep improving for when we don’t have it on other tracks.”
MotoGP has not competed in Argentina since 2019, and they will only be able to have one day of practice this weekend, which puts the cleanliness of the track at risk.
“In Qatar for the last few years we had tests before the races, which cleaned the track, this year there were no tests and the track was not so good at the beginning. There has been no racing here since 2019, my first year in MotoGP, so I don’t know what I can expect, but I’m going to try to give everything, as always”.
With the problem of the plane in Argentina, the debate about reducing the grand prix from three to two days has resurfaced.
“For me it’s the same, if the bike works three days doesn’t matter, but if there are problems on Friday it helps to find the set-up better, I like to reduce it to two days, but the mechanics would have a lot more work” .
A track, that of Termas de Río Hondo, which has always suffered from a lack of grip, one of the weaknesses of the Yamaha.
“I hope I don’t have to change many things, if there’s no grip I can’t do anything, just improve the bike. Grip is very important for us, we have a very small window of opportunity without grip, but with a lot of grip the bike works wonderful. You have to have a point of luck and adapt to each curve based on that, “he valued.
Drivers were also asked about the new chicane at the Red Bull Ring.
“In terms of safety it’s better, there’s always that dangerous moment in turn 2, whatever chicane they put on the straight will be fine for me,” he said with a laugh, referring to the Yamaha’s lower top speed.
Finally, Quartararo does not consider that the reduction of the weekend will benefit anyone in particular.
“I don’t think any team takes advantage of having only two days of Grand Prix, I don’t think anyone has more data or takes advantage,” he settled.
