No doubt his fifth place for the first Grand Prix in Qatar was not the idea.
After a brilliant qualification in second position, Fabio Quartararo had a lot more trouble in the race, where he ultimately never won.
Candidate for the title at the end of the season, the Niçois is forced to resume on Sunday on the same Losail track, for the second iteration of the GP of Qatar, which traditionally opens the season.
And the Frenchman should be able to have his card to play, judging the victory while mastering his teammate Maverick Vinales last Sunday.
However, Quartararo was the victim of a problem with the tires of his Yamaha.
On the strength of the data collected all weekend, the French driver seemed to have pinpointed the problems encountered in the race.
“We saw some places where I was a bit aggressive for nothing.
So I'm going to try to be a little softer this weekend and I think that will help a lot. ”
Not easy day ... but having fun / Not easy ... Mais on amuse pic.twitter.com/0Da2PLW3I9
- Fabio Quartararo (@ FabioQ20) April 2, 2021
Less aggressive on the track, Quartararo does not however promise a revolution in the approach of this second Qatari weekend.
“I think we have some things to try this weekend,” he reveals.
Last week we made too many changes that I wasn't very happy with.
So I'm going to keep the same base this weekend and just change some things. ”
Seventh and fourth in the first free practice sessions with margins of around 5 tenths on the best times, the Frenchman nonetheless notes the speed deficit that he returns to the Ducatis, very visible during the first round, despite of the Vinales number.
Countering Ducati in bends
Second at the start of the season, Johann Zarco caused a sensation with his Ducati Desmosedici, which he shares with the official team despite his pilot status in the Pramac satellite team.
With a top speed of 362.4 km / h, the Avignon resident even broke the speed record in the history of the discipline.
A record that already belonged to him, since the pre-season tests.
All these elements testify to the good health of the Ducati, further confirmed by the treble at the end of FP2.
First pursuer, Fabio Quartararo has shown that he can nevertheless hang on to the red arrows.
And in the race, the Yamaha rider already has a well-established plan, based on his experience acquired last Sunday.
"There are several corners here where there are not a lot of meters to accelerate," he noted Thursday.
I think it helps us to attack: from turn 5 to 6 or turn 9 to 10, it's very short, and I think that's the kind of turns in which our bike is very strong and where the 'we can carry an attack. "
Sure of his strength, Quartararo knows that in the prolonged absence of Marc Marquez (Honda) - he could return for the third round of the season in Portugal (April 18) - all points are good to take up front .
"In any case, I feel very good," he says.
I manage to carry strong attacks. ”
Zarco and Ducati are warned.
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Moto GP: 2nd behind Vinales, Zarco starts with a bang in Qatar