MotoGP: Fabio Quartararo in the points in San Marino, Johann Zarco down

In San Marino for the 14th round of the MotoGP season, Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco were fighting for points. Confident at the start of the weekend, their results remain encouraging.

Back for his second race after his Barcelona crash, Johann Zarco had an excellent Friday by qualifying directly for Q2. A result that seemed out of reach for the other Maralpin Fabio Quartararo whose Yamaha seemed to be in great difficulty like his teammates. Far from the pace in qualifying, the Nice native was still more than six tenths ahead of the other Yamahas in the standings. Despite this, he remained in a distant 14th place on the grid for the rest of the weekend. 

The qualifying session of Johann Zarco was not easy either since the racer from Cannes had not managed better than 11th position. Involved in an incident with Marco Bezzecchi, the Frenchman was ultimately penalized three grid positions for Sunday’s Grand Prix start.   

Before that, at the start of the sprint race, it was Fabio Quartararo who got the best start between the two Azur racers. Twelfth just ahead of Johann Zarco, the Nice native was attacking to stay in the wheel of the riders ahead. A bit too aggressive on an overtaking attempt on Diogo Moreira, “El Diablo” crashed, relegating him to last position with a Yamaha likely damaged. At the finish, Fabio Quartararo made his mea culpa: “ I did too much and I crashed. With Diogo in it he was gaining ground on the straights, then I was trying to come back to him […] So, I had a lot of trouble and, in turn 11, I arrived really, really fast.”

In his misfortune, this collision benefited his fellow countryman from Cannes who found himself in the top 10. Lacking pace to try to catch up with Luca Marini’s official machine, Johann Zarco managed his effort to complete the thirteen laps of the sprint in 10th position. In the press conference, the Frenchman was mixed: “I take one step forward and one step back, and it tends to frustrate me, to annoy me. I have no explanation. I don’t know if it’s setups we missed, or if it’s simply the human who couldn’t give the same as the day before […] Maybe the limit of the bike is 7th place“, he analyzed when discussing his difficulty in catching up to the bike in front of him.

Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco wheel to wheel in the race

This Sunday for the Grand Prix, the two Maralpins set off eager to earn good points. After an encouraging Warm-up for Fabio Quartararo, caution was necessary at the start. In 11th and 12th place after the first two laps of the race, the two compatriots raced together. Benefiting from numerous crashes ahead, they managed to gain positions lap after lap.

Less quick in race pace, Fabio Quartararo still managed to slightly distance Johann Zarco. Still with a great deficit in top speed (he was conceding ten km/h on the straightaway, editor’s note), the Nice native held his position without hoping for much more. Behind Johann Zarco lacking pace had to give way to Enea Bastianini. The Italian rider, much quicker in the race, then got ahead of the Nice rider while bringing the other Frenchman into the wheel of the #20. Alert behind his compatriot, the Cannes rider never managed to get close enough to attempt an overtake. Certainly dulled after his recent return to racing, Johann Zarco didn’t make it to the finish. Three laps from the end, the Honda LCR rider crashed alone in turn 8, signaling to the marshals: that’s enough! Unfortunate for him who had high ambitions at the start of the weekend.

The satisfaction of the day finally comes from Fabio Quartararo who resisted the comeback of Brad Binder’s KTM to finish in the top 10. An encouraging result when you consider the tense context between him and the Yamaha team management recently.

Next racing weekend next week in Austria on the Spielberg circuit. A track that could suit the Nice native who will be eager to continue his long-standing partnership with his usual team.