Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco concluded the Indonesian Grand Prix with two point-scoring results on Sunday morning in Mandalika. The Yamaha driver finished ninth after a hard-fought race, while the No. 5 Honda climbed the field to 13th place. Both French riders had experienced difficult qualifying on Saturday before finding more pace during the sprint.
The Asian and Oceanian tour of the MotoGP world championship continues in Indonesia, on the Mandalika circuit. Back on the calendar after four years following a long absence, the Grand Prix provided mixed fortunes for the two Côte d’Azur riders. After a difficult Saturday, both French riders managed to progress during the races, with a more positive outcome Sunday morning.
Difficult qualifying for the Maralpin riders
Saturday’s day started with a frustrating qualifying session for Fabio Quartararo. Directly qualified for Q2 on Friday, the Yamaha driver was hoping to improve his time. But a yellow flag, caused by Fermín Aldeguer’s crash at turn 16, resulted in the cancellation of his lap. The Nice rider therefore finished 12th and last place in Q2.
Johann Zarco had an even more complicated session. The LCR Honda driver crashed twice in Q1, first at turn 10, then in the sequence of turns 2 and 3. Despite his attempts to continue, the Frenchman failed to improve his time sufficiently and qualified in 20th position. A performance that constitutes his worst qualifying since the 2020 Spanish Grand Prix.
Fabio Quartararo ninth, Johann Zarco climbs to 12th in sprint
Saturday’s afternoon sprint allowed Fabio Quartararo to find better sensations. Starting 12th, the Yamaha driver took advantage of the clash between Marco Bezzecchi and Raúl Fernández to gain positions. After being overtaken by Luca Marini in the first lap, the Nice rider regained the advantage a few laps later and finished ninth, scoring a point. “The morning was difficult, the afternoon better,” the Nice rider told journalists. “I felt much, much faster. The afternoon was rather acceptable.”
The Frenchman was also satisfied with his pace, even if overtaking remained difficult. “I expected to finish in this position […] Two riders crashed ahead so we finished ninth. It’s the result I expected.”
The tire question remained open before the Grand Prix. Fabio Quartararo was notably considering using the soft tire, unlike the previous season where the medium tire had caused him difficulties. “I think it’s possible [to use the soft]. But last year, the medium really wasn’t working for us. This year it’s working so I think we have both options. We’ll evaluate the medium and we’ll see which tire we’ll use.”
Johann Zarco also managed to turn things around after his failed qualifying. Starting from 20th place, the Frenchman had a poor start and found himself second-to-last at the end of the first lap. He then progressively climbed through the field, to 12th place, achieved after an overtake on Luca Marini in the final lap.
Without scoring any points, the LCR Honda driver finished as the best representative of the manufacturer during the sprint. An encouraging result before the main race: “The qualifying was clearly difficult this morning and starting from 20th position on the grid doesn’t make things easier. We nevertheless made use of the sprint race this afternoon to try the medium tire at the rear and thus gather useful information for Sunday. We found some advantages using this compound and that’s positive.”
Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco in the points
Sunday morning, Fabio Quartararo confirmed his progress by finishing ninth in the Indonesian Grand Prix. Starting 12th, the Yamaha driver scored more points and brought his weekend total to eight units. He finishes once again as the best driver for his manufacturer, while Álex Rins took 15th place.
This race had special significance for the Nice rider, who was celebrating his 150th start in the premier category. Despite difficulties in the opening laps, the Frenchman was satisfied with his performance: “It was really a nice race. I struggled a bit in the first 10 laps but we can be satisfied. I was on the limit in the last 5 laps and I wasn’t able to overtake Fabio Di Giannantonio.”
The Nice rider now wants to continue this momentum in the upcoming rounds: “We’ve always managed to get good results here. Last year we finished two seconds from the podium. We take it race by race, if we can achieve good results like this it’s good but I had fun today.”
Johann Zarco also managed to climb the standings. Starting from 19th position, the LCR Honda driver finished 13th at the end of 27 laps and scored three more points. After his 12th place in the sprint, the Frenchman therefore confirmed his progress despite the difficulties encountered with his Honda since the start of the weekend.
Both Côte d’Azur riders thus leave Indonesia with a more encouraging outcome than their qualifying had suggested.
The championship will continue on Sunday, October 25 at Phillip Island circuit, in Australia. The Grand Prix start is scheduled for 4 a.m. French time.
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