We had left Fabio Quartararo on the ground, thrown onto the asphalt of Assen.
Unhappy and as if forbidden by his mistake, where his slip had taken with him Aleix Espargaro, his runner-up in the world championship.
Five weeks after leaving the track in the Netherlands, the world champion was not smiling again at Silverstone.
Modest eighth in the British Grand Prix on Sunday, the French driver did not lose everything and that is the main thing.
Quartararo knew he was in a minefield in England, where he was condemned to serve a “long lap” (an elongated turn) penalty for his collision in Assen.
What prevent him for sure to play the win.
And that's what happened.
Author of an excellent start to move from fourth to second place,
"El Diablo" found himself fifth after serving his punishment and then gradually fell into line.
Lacking rhythm in traffic, the championship leader struggled for a long time to grab valuable points before settling for eighth place in the end.
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This return to school is in line with the last outing of Nice.
After a delicate start to the season, Quartararo had quickly raised the bar, achieving a full campaign since the arrival of the paddock in Europe.
At the end of April, the Yamaha rider pulled off a great number to win in Portugal.
He then pocketed two other races (Catalonia and Germany), was on the podium twice (Spain, Italy), but he also failed at the foot of the box at home, at Le Mans.
Before the return of trouble in Assen, therefore, then Silverstone, to a lesser extent.
Lack of power
A rollercoaster season for the reigning world champion, whose on-track consistency was the main reason for his rise to the crowning glory last year.
In two weeks, the 23-year-old will have another opportunity to find a positive trajectory in Austria, in the middle of the Styrian mountains.
His task will not be easy on the ultra-fast track of Spielberg, where the lack of power of his horse could fail him against the competition, as at the start of the season.
But the way Quartararo corrected the situation proves that his Yamaha M1 was not as badly born as he had imagined.
Through his skill in riding, the Frenchman was able to make up for an inevitable speed deficit on the handlebars of a motorcycle that he continues to tame.
So much so that the Niçois, for a time in deep reflection on his future,
For 2022, the Riviera remains leader of the championship after 12 races (out of 20) and has almost a victory in advance (22 pts) over his runner-up, the tenacious Espargaro.
With three new titles by then?
For 2022, the Riviera remains leader of the championship after 12 races (out of 20) and has almost a victory in advance (22 pts) over his runner-up, the tenacious Espargaro.
Touched in the shoulder following a violent fall on Saturday morning, the Spaniard, tough and above all heroic, went to the end of himself to finish ninth, just behind Quartararo, and concede only a small additional point.
But the main competitor of the French could well be called Francesco Bagnaia, like last season.
Outstripped by 26 units in 2021, the Italian finds his sensations with Ducati.
Last winner before the summer break, “Pecco” did it again at Silverstone to come back 49 lengths behind the championship leader.
That is almost two victories in advance for the latter,
who knows, however, that the Ducati rider has a knack for finishing the seasons with a bang (four victories in the last six races last year).
If he manages to go after all the races (three retirements this year), the Turinese will pose as the main outsider behind Quartararo.
Further, Johann Zarco lost very big this Sunday.
Third in the championship before the start, the Avignonnais missed out on a first victory in the premier category.
On pole for the eighth time in his career, the Ducati-Pramac rider had made an excellent start - which is not his strong point - before going off on his own on the sixth lap.
A fall and an abandonment later, Zarco had
"the balls"
to have missed the boat.
Once again, his quest for a first success flew away, like the prospect of a possible duel Quartararo-Zarco for the title.