Losail.- Fabio Quartararo had to go through Q1 during this Saturday of pole positions at the Qatar Grand Prix. The French driver finished the qualifying session with an 11th place, ending Saturday with a bitter taste at the Losail International Circuit.
Fabio made it through to Q2, but failed to qualify beyond 11th place, more than six tenths off the pace set by the fastest rider of the day, Jorge Martín. However, the world champion confesses that “he is not angry”, since he considers that “he could not do better”.
“I give my 100% every time I go out on the track and today, tomorrow and until the end of the season. But it was hard,” he confirmed.
It is not the first time that the Frenchman has warned the factory in search of more power, however, Fabio reaffirmed himself this Saturday after asking his box to take Suzuki’s example.
“The problem is different from Suzuki. I think Yamaha tried to gain power, but they have not succeeded. It was not a question of being more or less conservative.
“My feeling basically is that when we don’t have the rear grip, we’re struggling,” he added.
“And I think we don’t have room to put more power into some accelerations.”
The Frenchman assures that this happens because “he pushes himself to the limit” on the bike.
“When you push yourself to the limit, there comes a time when the bike is no longer stable,” he described.
“And when the bike shakes it means I’m on the limit, but for me the main difference is that the rear grip is missing. I’m going to the limit, but I’m not an engineer.”
“We know that this is a weak point for us, so I would say that this is the main problem,” the boy from the Côte d’Azur hurried on.
However, it seems that Fabio and the tuning fork garage could see the light at the end of the tunnel.
“I think we have an aerodynamic package approved and in Mugello we could have the new one. This generates a lot of drag for us,” explained the Frenchman, who assures that Yamaha needs aerodynamics “with fewer wings.”
Finally, Quartararo already knows the way to victory in Qatar, having won last year, but he considers that to win in 2022 he will have to “do a perfect first lap”.
“Coming to Qatar I expected to be much better, but as always, I’m fast.”
“I gave my best, that’s why I’m not angry,” he concluded after nightfall on the Qatari track.
