Quartararo on top as Yamaha make impressive comeback
Quartararo tops timesheet on his factory debut, Morbidelli is fast, Viñales makes gains, but what about Rossi?
Early days, but if the two-day Qatar test is anything to go by, Yamaha are in good shape heading into the 2021 MotoGP season.
Factory new boy Fabio Quartararo took half a day to readjust to the M1 after spending time testing his R1 superbike during the winter break, but he ended the weekend fastest with a 1:53.940. He was the only rider to drop into the 1:53s and only 0.082s slower than the fastest time set at last year’s three-day Qatar test, ironically set by teammate Maverick Viñales. Quartararo was a busy man on Sunday, testing Yamaha’s new chassis and swingarm, but was still able to record consistent five-lap stints throughout the day. Regarding feedback, the Frenchman admitted that the swingarm needed more testing as his feeling was not so good. However, he was optimistic that the 2021 chassis was heading in the right direction – with the goal being to match the 2019 chassis used by Franco Morbidelli to such good effect in 2020. Quartararo described that chassis as being unbelievable. The 21-year-old, it appears, is settling into the big shoes left by Valentino Rossi rather nicely.
“I feel good because before the start of the season, and I kept this to myself, I said ‘wow, this is a job with a lot of responsibility’,” Quartararo admitted. “I wasn’t stressed or pressured, but I was a little bit scared, but finally, I love it - being able to say the decision that we need to do and the direction to take, with Maverick of course.
“I love to give my clear comments and I feel across the two days I gave some really good comments about the feeling, about the new chassis and swingarm.”
Whilst Quartararo concentrated on new parts, Viñales successfully worked to improve himself as a rider. The Spaniard focused on his rhythm throughout the day, mainly using his old package plus a few general parts, whilst also working on the electronics and consistency on a full fuel tank in a bid to improve his opening laps of future races. Although seventh overall (★0.455s adrift and third-fastest Yamaha), Viñales was super-consistent throughout the final day. Unlike most riders, Viñales was able to record low 1:55s and high 1:54s at ease during 10-12-lap stints. The 26-year-old found joy on a full tank and also when the grip levels dropped. Several riders weren’t overly forthcoming in their media debriefs but Viñales was visibly and verbally delighted.
‘I was a little bit scared, but finally, I love it’
“Honestly, I’m very happy and pleased with the test,” he said. “We’ve concentrated on rhythm which for me felt fantastic. I was uite surprised that by midday I could ride 54s and this helped me to remain very positive because the grip was not that good, but I could ride pretty fast.” Asked about the full tank, Viñales commented: “We know we have the speed, and we know we can be ama ing on one lap, but we are not ama ing during the first laps of the race, not even at the start, so it is a point we are working very hard for sure. I’m really happy and pleased about the feeling I got from the bike.” Meanwhile, Franco Morbidelli tested small upgrades on his 2019 A-Spec machine, finding slight improvements, on his way to fourth overall – just 0.213s slower than Quartararo.