The Yamaha rider, Fabio Quartararo, has experienced a complicated day during practice for the Malaysian Grand Prix, concluding in a disappointing 19th place. His performance has generated great frustration, as he acknowledged that he had not struggled so much at the Sepang circuit in a long time.
Quartararo, who was MotoGP champion in 2021, showed signs of distress throughout the session, including moments when he appeared to hit the fuel tank while returning to the pits. His time was 1.6 seconds off the best and he was only ahead of a reserve rider and another one with injuries, reflecting a half-second gap compared to his teammate, Alex Rins, who was the highest-ranked Yamaha in 14th place.
Regarding his performance, Quartararo noted that although the track is criticized for its poor condition, other riders had managed to improve their times compared to last year. ‘I don’t think it’s much worse, but I felt very bad. I don’t know if it’s due to a setup issue or other factors, but I didn’t feel good at any moment,’ expressed the French rider.
When asked about his discomfort, he commented that it was a frustrating day, and that his lack of pace may have been caused by a combination of different factors. ‘I couldn’t get a good rhythm to make a fast lap,’ he added, lamenting that he did not recall such a difficult weekend in Sepang.
It is important to remember that in the previous edition of the Malaysian GP, Quartararo managed to qualify in the second row of the grid and finished fifth in both races. On that occasion, he was riding with the previous generation engine of Yamaha, which has recently been replaced by a new V4 model.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
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