MotoGP San Marino GP
Quartararo: Yamaha “struggling more than usual” in qualifying
MotoGP championship leader Fabio Quartararo admits he is “struggling much more than usual” in qualifying at the San Marino Grand Prix, despite putting his Yamaha third on the grid.
Lewis Duncan
Edited: Sep 19, 2021, 6:17 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Quartararo has an incredible qualifying record in 2021, scoring five poles and putting his M1 on the front row of the grid at all but one race so far.
At Misano he was once again third having qualified in the same position at Silverstone and Aragon, with his latest front row coming despite a late crash at the first corner.
Quartararo is surrounded by Ducatis at the front of the grid at Misano, with Francesco Bagnaia and Jack Miller first and second, and the Pramac duo of Jorge Martin and Johann Zarco fourth and fifth.
Commenting on the volume of Ducatis at the head of the field relative to Yamaha bikes, with the next-best M1 Franco Morbidelli down in 16th, Quartararo said: “I’m exactly in the middle of four Ducatis.
“So, of course it’s not the best. It would be great to have some of the blue bikes in front, but I hope that soon Franco will recover well and be up there because we are struggling much more in qualifying than usual.
“And I tried to give some great information to Yamaha for what I see today, it’s quite interesting. It’s not super-easy.”
Quartararo says his crash at the end of qualifying was simply a result of him braking too late into Turn 1, but was happy to have found where the limit of the front tyre is ahead of the race.
“The fourth qualifying I made on this track in MotoGP and every time I’m in third position, so I think we made a great job,” he added.
“Last lap I tried a little bit too much in the first corner.
“We checked the data and I braked way too late, but this is what I wanted to do and it was great to feel that limit on the front.
“So happy about the pace I had in FP4, in the second run we made a small change on the bike and I improve with used tyres. So, looking forward to trying this set-up with the new tyre.”
Read Also:
- Miller ‘happy to play blocker’ for Bagnaia in Misano MotoGP race
- Valentino Rossi “very frustrated” with Misano MotoGP Q1 crash
- Mir critical of Marquez’s towing tactics in MotoGP at Misano
Sunday’s forecast remains unsettled, with Quartararo admitting he wants a dry race having finished down in 18th in a wet FP2 on Friday.
Initially joking that his current form means he will be without points if the race is wet, Quartararo later clarified this comment and says he will not be conservative in a rain-hit race.
“We have many things to try, and in any case if it’s wet I will give my 100% because if we are in the wet I think now we have zero points,” he said.
“I will give my 100% if it’s wet, I will give my 100% in the dry.”
He later added: “I wanted to say the position we were in FP2 was 18th, so it’s no points [if it was the race].
“And I mean we need to make a step, so that’s why I say I need to give my 100%.
“We will see what happens if it rains. So, I have not to be conservative on the wet.”
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Miller ‘happy to play blocker’ for Bagnaia in Misano MotoGP race
Next article Vinales: Qualifying “still complicated” on Aprilia MotoGP bike
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Lewis Duncan
MotoGP 2025: Full rider line-up revealed
MotoGP
MotoGP
MotoGP 2025: Full rider line-up revealed
A year on from Marquez’s Germany MotoGP meltdown, has Honda improved?
MotoGP
MotoGP
German GP
A year on from Marquez’s Germany MotoGP meltdown, has Honda improved?
What’s behind MotoGP’s right-hander chaos in Germany practice?
MotoGP
MotoGP
German GP
What’s behind MotoGP’s right-hander chaos in Germany practice?
More from
Fabio Quartararo
Fabio Quartararo 19th and angry: “I’ve not struggled so much at Sepang in a long time”
MotoGP
MotoGP
Malaysian GP
Fabio Quartararo 19th and angry: “I’ve not struggled so much at Sepang in a long time”
MotoGP riders oppose fines for missing fan events
MotoGP
MotoGP
Indonesian GP
MotoGP riders oppose fines for missing fan events
Fabio Quartararo forced to leave Monster as Red Bull returns to Honda
MotoGP
MotoGP
Fabio Quartararo forced to leave Monster as Red Bull returns to Honda
More from
Yamaha Factory Racing
With the Qatar MotoGP Grand Prix over, it is time to heal the wounds
MotoGP
MotoGP
Qatar GP
With the Qatar MotoGP Grand Prix over, it is time to heal the wounds
Carlos Ezpeleta: Qatar GP “noise” left MotoGP unnecessarily exposed
MotoGP
MotoGP
Qatar GP
Carlos Ezpeleta: Qatar GP “noise” left MotoGP unnecessarily exposed
Alex Marquez undergoes surgery on his right shoulder and begins recovery at home
MotoGP
MotoGP
Qatar GP
Alex Marquez undergoes surgery on his right shoulder and begins recovery at home
Latest news
Myers Riley Motorsports adds Andretti alongside returning Fraga for 2027 IMSA GTD campaign
IMSA
IMSA IMSA 6 min
Myers Riley Motorsports adds Andretti alongside returning Fraga for 2027 IMSA GTD campaign
Las Vegas GP reveals neon sign-inspired trophy design
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Las Vegas GP
40 min
Las Vegas GP reveals neon sign-inspired trophy design
IndyCar 2026 season review: Juncos Hollinger Racing
IndyCar
Indy IndyCar 43 min
IndyCar 2026 season review: Juncos Hollinger Racing
Indy NXT unveils 15-race 2027 schedule with four doubleheaders
Indy NXT
IndL Indy NXT 48 min
Indy NXT unveils 15-race 2027 schedule with four doubleheaders
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe