For this new event, the MotoGP grid traveled to Indonesia. A weekend to forget for Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco on an overheated track.
After a generally difficult weekend last week, the riders from the Côte d’Azur experienced a mixed qualifying. While Fabio Quartararo was in Q2 (8th), Johann Zarco, lacking pace, could not do better than 18th place, far behind the official Hondas.
At the start, the Maralpins found themselves close despite themselves, due to a big mistake by Fabio Quartararo. The Nice-native exits the first corner in last position but climbs back just behind his compatriot.
Johann Zarco, cautious, still gains two places. At the end of the first lap, he takes advantage of the various mistakes of the riders ahead of him to reach 13th position. In the third lap, the Cannes-native finds himself just ahead of the 2025 world champion, Marc Márquez, penalized with a long lap. The Maralpin manages to resist for five laps with some fine battles. Struggling in the final part of the race, the LCR rider was suffering with his tires and was overtaken by Fabio Quartararo before falling. “I couldn’t ride the way I wanted and I crashed in the last corner, a few laps from the finish, trying to attack,” he explained upon returning to the paddock. “I still lack confidence to be able to ride freely, but we are working hard with the team to find the right solution. I am satisfied with the progress of Honda, and the presence of the official riders at the front is a positive sign. We just need to keep working to find the right feeling.”
For the Nice rider, the same fate as Johann Zarco in the last lap. While the start dictated a difficult race, the pace was not satisfactory in anticipation of the Grand Prix: “it’s a weekend that is very complicated, especially not understanding why we struggle so much and why the other Yamahas are fast. I can’t manage it. It will be difficult to fix these problems in 24 hours, so we will try to focus on the upcoming races. For tomorrow, we will try to use the same tires, probably the hard one at the front, to make it simpler.”
Missed Opportunities in the Race
This Sunday, for the Grand Prix, the Maralpins took advantage of the misfortunes of the riders ahead of them to gain several positions. Fabio Quartararo repositioned himself behind his teammate in 6th position, while Johann Zarco gained two positions to find himself 14th. The Cannes-native remained ahead of his teammate but far from the pace this weekend in Indonesia.
The same observation for Fabio Quartararo. The Nice rider struggles to maintain consistency on each lap, probably due to the degradation of his soft tire and the track conditions (60°C on the ground). He struggles to keep up with his teammate at the start of the race and finds himself under pressure from Álex Márquez, who eventually overtakes him in the 10th lap of the race.
Meanwhile, Johann Zarco is grappling with Enea Bastianini for 13th position, which he manages to snag after the first third of the race. On his side, Fabio Quartararo benefits from a regrouping due to several overtakes ahead.
“El Diablo” finds himself fighting for the podium and regains his position from the first lap (6th). But as soon as the leaders pick up the pace, the Nice rider cannot follow. He is overtaken by Brad Binder, then by Luca Marini. In the battle, he passes his teammate, also on soft tires, whose tire will explode in the last six laps.
Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco finish respectively 7th and 12th, in the points, therefore.
Next event in two weeks on the Phillip Island circuit in Australia. A place that will bring back good memories to Johann Zarco…
