Fabio Quartararo says that Yamaha test rider Cal Crutchlow reckons that the brands current iteration of its M1 is “the most physically demanding bike he’s ever ridden.”
Quartararo missed out on retaining the MotoGP world championship he scored in 2021 by just 17 points to Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia following a tricky 2022 campaign, one that netted him a total of three victories before his machine’s deficiencies became all too strong across the second half of the year as his rivals made progress.
Yamaha failed to deliver on Quartararo’s main hopes of extra power after it ran into reliability problems with its ’22-spec powerplant which left him towards the foot of the speedtrap figures across the season, though the brand as a whole also struggled with the chassis – as illustrated by the woes of the Frenchman’s team-mate Franco Morbidelli and the riders of satellite squad RNF Racing.
While Quartararo was able to largely ride around the M1’s limitations, he stated to Austrian publication Speedweek that in the three years he has competed with the bike its character “has changed a lot”, to the extent that Crutchlow told him the prototype is “the most physically demanding bike he’s ever ridden” – having been universally known as one of the easiest just a few seasons prior.
“I don’t have that much experience in MotoGP, but when I got on (the M1) everyone told me that the Yamaha is the bike that everyone would want to ride because it was so easy to ride,” explained Quartararo.
“But in the past three years, the character of the bike has changed a lot and the M1 has become more physically demanding.
“I asked Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha test rider) who has a lot of experience and knows the Ducati and the Honda what he thinks and he told me that the Yamaha is the most physically demanding bike he’s ever ridden.
“At least he confirmed that it wasn’t my fault and that my physical condition didn’t deteriorate, because I work really hard.”
The 11-time premier class race winner also says that Yamaha “apologised” for not being able to provide the extra power Quartararo craved ahead of the ’22 term, conceding that following a tough opening four events – despite a strong ruin to second in the Indonesian Grand Prix – he worried that “we wouldn’t be able to win even one race.”
“Before the start of the season, they (Yamaha) apologized for it,” Quartararo continued.
“After winning the 2021 world title, I naturally wanted to successfully defend it, but the way we started the World Championship I initially believed that we wouldn’t be able to win even one race.
“After Austin, I said to myself that I had to stop thinking so negatively.
“I wanted to focus instead on getting the most out of myself and the gear I have on every ride.
“In the end, the first part of the season went better than expected, but then the reality became apparent in the second half.”