Quartararo: "The goal is to be leaders of MotoGP until the end"

Phillip Island.- The Yamaha rider was the fastest among the riders competing for the championship, beating Aleix Espargaró on the time sheet, who was seventh, and Pecco Bagnaia, who finished eighth, showing himself perfectly adapted to the extremely fast Australian circuit , in which it has not been competed since 2019.

Fabio Quartararo, who two weeks ago lived through one of his worst races since he was in the premier class, finishing 17th in Thailand, wants to recover the good feelings quickly and maintain his chances for the championship, which he continues to lead although now with only two points from advantage over Pecco.

“It’s been a good day. This morning I made a decent time despite the conditions, and in the afternoon I made a mistake on my fastest lap, so I have room for improvement,” explained the Frenchman at the end of the day.

For now, the weather conditions, which announced the possibility of rain for this Friday, have spared the runners, and although the environment remains cold, they have been able to ride dry and, at times, even in the sun.

“What is strange is that in the last corner there is a puddle, we will see if they can dry it out. There are some points where they can overtake. What I lose in the straights I recover in the curves,” explained the Yamaha rider.

Phillip Island is a particularly fast circuit, without strong braking and, therefore, without an advantage for the bikes that better recover acceleration, a handicap for the M1 that does not suffer as much here.

“I think I’m doing well in the first sector, but I still have room for improvement,” insisted Fabio, who lost 139 thousandths of a second compared to the benchmark left by Johann Zarco.

About the points where the blue bike penalizes the most, very sensitive with any tire change.

“It’s not that he suffers with the bike lying down, but as soon as he picks it up. But with the team we have set ourselves the goal of not focusing only on the tires”, which penalized him in Thailand.

Quartararo was very incisive in his improvement options throughout his appearance.

“I am confident because I am driving well and because I have a few tenths that I can win.”

For the Frenchman, the objective has not changed, and although he is increasingly under pressure from his pursuers, especially Bagnaia, he continues to keep his focus on defending the crown.

“The goal is to be leaders until the end of the course.”

For this, it is important to get a good result this weekend and, above all, to finish ahead of the Italian’s Ducati.

“I started as expected; we took a good step forward”, Fabio assessed before acknowledging that, compared to 2019, “there are a few more potholes” on the track.

Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha Factory Racing