He is back to the wall. The French motorcycle rider, Fabio Quartararo, has no choice but to achieve a feat. Falling during the Phillip Island Grand Prix, resulting in a third white result in the space of four races, the Frenchman has let slip the lead in the Moto GP standings and now finds himself 14 points behind leader Francesco Bagnaia.
Recent and successive poor performances which even surprised his direct opponent in the race for the title who recently declared: “I don’t know what happened. But it is obvious that Yamaha has problems in the race at the moment. Their engine is a bit weaker than other manufacturers’ engines.”
“A circuit that I appreciate”
But the Frenchman still wants to believe it. Questioned after the Australian Grand Prix last weekend, Fabio Quartararo was combative: “Malaysia, it’s a circuit that I appreciate, I have good memories there.” And for good reason, even if the Frenchman only raced on the Sepang international circuit during his rookie season (he had then finished seventh on the Petronas-Yamah), he had however achieved pole position.
What make him hope and foresee a final fight during the last Grand Prix of the season in Valencia, on November 6th.
More than 50 points to take
There are only two Grand Prix left for this 2022 season. The reigning world champion therefore has no other choice but to finish ahead of Francesco Bagnaia twice. “We are always there for the battle”, wanted to reassure the pilot. And for these two remaining Grand Prix, 50 points will be up for grabs. Catching up with the 14 behind Francesco Bagnaia will be a difficult mission but not impossible even if it will involve two exploits.
The Frenchman, losing confidence, has finished only once in the top five since his last success, celebrated at the German Grand Prix before the start of the summer. Results at half mast because of his Yamaha motorcycle. The latter requires “a different riding style from that of all the other motorcycles”, certified the person concerned.
Difficult, therefore, to lend themselves to any prediction for the reigning world champion who will not let go until the last straight line.