Aurélie Sacchelli, Media365, published on Saturday October 5, 2024 at 11:35 a.m.
Respectively 12th and 14th in the sprint race of the Japanese Grand Prix, Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco did not weigh on the race. They revealed the reasons upon arrival.
After a generally positive Indonesian Grand Prix, where they took 18 points between them, Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco got off to a bad start to their Japanese weekend, finishing 12th and 14th in the sprint race, during which they did not finish. did not weigh. Worse still, the Honda driver had to take a “long lap” after slightly pushing Joan Mir and Takaaki Nakagami. After the race, they returned to their poor performance at the microphone of Canal+. As is often the case this season, Fabio Quartararo, who started 12th, blamed his Yamaha, and in particular its lack of grip. “I had a good start, but at the first corner it was quite complicated. Then the grip wasn’t there at all. We were one second behind the men in front. It was a complicated day for us, he said. I think the track conditions influence all our results. If there is grip we are pretty good, if there is nothing we are really limited. Even during the warm-up lap, I had difficulty keeping up with the drivers in front of me. In Misano (where he finished 7th in the sprint race and the GP, sprint), we had exactly the same bike as today. There is no reason for me to fight with Morbidelli at Misano and now we are ten seconds behind after 12 laps. The track conditions change everything for us.” Let’s hope that the Motegi track, wet this Saturday, will be more favorable on Sunday…
Zarco weighed down from the first round
As for Johann Zarco, who started 16th, he regretted finding himself at the back of the peloton quickly, without being able to defend his chances on the Honda. “It’s a shame because on the first lap, there was an error from Mir, who missed turn 11, on the descent. I was a little caught up in his speed and lost a lot of places. I was with Aleix Espargaro and Fabio, that could have allowed me to get a better place at the end of the race. But when you’re behind, the others aren’t going slowly either, and you’re not feeling good on the bike. Too much loss in acceleration, I can’t get where I want when entering corners, so I struggle a bit. » Fortunately, on Sunday he will have the opportunity to make up for it.
