Quartararo battled for victory with KTM rider Miguel Oliveira in the second half of Sunday’s 24-lap Catalonia GP, but was hit by a bizarre problem when his leather racing suit opened fully with about five laps to go.
The Yamaha rider was seen taking off his chest protector and continued riding with his suit closed after not re-zipping, but dropped to third place in the closing stages.
A detour into the 22nd lap also earned him a three-second time penalty, which dropped him from third to fourth at the checkered flag behind Ducati’s Jack Miller.
When asked by Motorsport.com to explain what happened, Quartararo admitted he was at a loss and says Alpinestars are currently investigating the problem.
“I don’t know what happened, I just know that with five laps to go in the first corner I opened the leather completely,” he said.
“I tried to just put it back in a normal position, I couldn’t. So was hard to ride but unfortunately it happens.
“It happened today, so Alpinestars is looking into how it is possible because at the end of the race it was possible to close it again.
“But it is like that, it was not our day, but I can be satisfied with this fourth place … well, third, but fourth.”
The reaction on social media to Quartararo going on with his lederhosen was divided as a number of people – including two-time MotoGP World Champion Casey Stoner – felt the Yamaha rider should have been disqualified from the race.
The FIM rules for driver safety equipment state: “The equipment must be worn and correctly attached at all times during the activity on the track.”
Quartararo – who already disagrees with his time penalty for exceeding the route limit – believes in the question of his leather and whether there should be further penalties should not go any further.
“Well, I think I already have a sentence that I don’t agree to [with], downgraded from P3 to P4 for three seconds, ”he added.
“But I think this penalty is enough. But in the end it is over, the race is over.
“The safety… we finished the race, everything is safe.
“Well, I think it’s not enough to talk at the moment because the race is over. I think there is no point in talking about these possible things anymore. “
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Even without the leather problem, Quartararo doesn’t have the feeling that he could have challenged Oliveira in the end because he didn’t feel as good on the hard rear tire as he did during practice.
“Yes, I saved the tire, but to be honest, Miguel was so strong on the left and I didn’t have the feeling of this morning with the tough one, or even the whole weekend,” he explained.
“I think all Yamahas have this problem because, for me, Franco [Morbidelli] was one of the big contenders for victory and it ended up far away.
“I haven’t had the best feeling with the tire, Maverick [Vinales] looks like it too.
“Well, strange feeling, but with all the things that happened to us today, I think fourth place is okay.”