Fabio Quartararo for Ruik: We had big problems with Yamaha, I thought a lot about the contract. What don’t you know about the reigning champion?

Will Fabio Quartararo win another world title? That’s a question we won’t know the answer to for a few months, but he is currently well on his way to a defence. In an interview with Ruik, the French rider spoke about this year’s race, Yamaha’s problems and also expressed his support for his close friend Daniel Ricciardo.

Quartararo recently signed a new contract with the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team, but in an interview with select media, including Ruik, he admitted that it was not an easy decision.

“It was difficult because you are thinking about a decision that can affect your career and your future. And I wanted to be sure of my decision, so I took my time. And realized that staying at Yamaha was the right decision. This project is also on the right track. Well, that’s exactly why I decided to extend my contract,” Quartararo explains in the interview.

Big problems at the start of the season, a change of mindset also helped

At the beginning of the year, the reigning world champion had big problems with his Yamaha, especially in terms of top speed. He even had to convince his team that his bike was really in bad shape and needed a lot of adjustments and improvements.

So after a few initial races, Yamaha started working on their bikes and this is also the reason why Quartararo is the current leader of the riders’ championship. However, he also admitted in a recent interview that he changed his mindset after moving to Europe, and it was this that helped him to his first win of the season (VC of Portugal – ed.).

“For me, though… Because we used the same engine in 2021 as in 2020, you expect big changes from your bike in the new season. But there was no big change. I’ve always been motivated. It’s just that when you see others improving and you’re standing still, you get angry and you lose motivation.

I was really disappointed with the first races, especially after Qatar and Argentina. Then in Austin I changed my mind. I was fighting with Marc (Márquez – ed.), not for the podium or even for the win, but this great fight made me happy.

And then when we moved toEurope, there was a massive improvement. The tracks were very different (compared to those in the Americas or Qatar) and I felt pretty good thanks to the change in my set-up,” Quartararo admitted.

Second half of the season

As you can see in the attached Twitter post, Quartararo is once again leading the drivers’ championship. Compared to last season, however, he is leading with a smaller points lead, and it is in the second half of the season that the 23-year-old Frenchman is facing races and circuits where he is struggling.

“When I look at the second part of the season, there are a lot of tracks that I like – the Netherlands, Austria, Misano, Japan, Thailand, Australia, Malaysia… There are probably two circuits where I struggle (Aragon), but I’ll try to deal with it,” said the Yamaha rider.

So at the moment, the obvious future MotoGP icon is well on his way to defending his title. However, with eight races still to go in the 2022 season, Quartara will have a tough fight ahead of him.

Quartararo also tried out a Formula 1 car

El Diablo has a good relationship with Lewis Hamilton, and it is probably also because of this that he was able to try out a Mercedes car. So in the interview he tried to compare F1 with MotoGP and revealed his point of view.

“Obviously I’m a really big car fan, especially F1. The speed that the cars can reach in the corners, it’s unbelievable. And of course, it was my dream to test a Formula 1 car. But it’s hard to compare because I was only invited as a guest and I was there to watch the qualifying and the race.

Anyway, the budget for the two sports is totally different. It’s amazing to race there, it’s something completely different again. We have a completely different mentality. But I think both sports have their own specialties,” remarked El Diablo, as the reigning champion is nicknamed.

Many fans will also be unaware that Quartararo counts Australia’s Ricciardo of McLaren among his best mates.

“Daniel and I have a really special connection because he’s a really special person for me. He is one of my best friends. And of course I wish him to win and get the results he deserves. I don’t really follow that side of the sport (F1), but Daniel is a really great person and I like him.

And of course I hope he takes the necessary steps to feel better in his car so that we can see him at the top of the Formula 1 championship,” he concluded.

Source: MotoGP