Yamaha Faces Grip Troubles at Motegi: Quartararo and Rins Struggle Amidst Recent Gains

Yamaha laments a "significant issue" as they pinpoint a malfunction.

"Fabio and I are facing the same challenges," they admit.

On Friday, during the practice session for the Japanese MotoGP, Yamaha's recent improvement in performance disappeared.

In the earlier rounds at Misano and Mandalika, Yamaha's riders managed to secure positions within the top 10 during practice sessions. This achievement provided a much-needed morale boost following extended phases of underperformance.

On Friday at Motegi, Fabio Quartararo secured the 14th spot, while his teammate Alex Rins claimed the 20th position.

Rins expressed that dealing with the circumstances today was extremely difficult.

"I was attempting to put forth my best effort, but something just isn't clicking."

Fabio and I are experiencing the same issues. We don't have enough traction or grip on the edges.

"The primary feature of this track is intense braking, yet we're encountering more issues with the hard front tire than we anticipated. We need to investigate the reasons behind this."

Quartararo mentioned, "We faced difficulties today. It appears that the track impacts how well our bike performs."

"When the track provides good traction, our performance isn't too poor. However, if the track conditions offer low grip, we're significantly off the pace needed for pole position. We're struggling with insufficient rear grip, which poses a challenge."

Team manager Massimo Meregalli expressed that Motegi is a unique circuit, and it does not highlight our advantages.

"One major issue is the insufficient grip, which prevents Fabio and Alex from performing at their best. This lack of grip impacts their ability to brake effectively, navigate corners, and maintain the appropriate lean angle."

"It's disheartening to find ourselves outside the Practice top 10 here, especially after performing well in Misano and Mandalika. However, given the nature of this circuit, we anticipated that this Grand Prix would pose a challenge."

"Nonetheless, we plan to keep looking for ways to enhance our performance over the weekend. We will thoroughly examine the data to identify a solution to test tomorrow."

This weekend, Remy Gardner will participate as a wildcard entry for Yamaha, adding a third bike to their lineup on the track.

After Friday's practice session, he found himself in 23rd position at the rear of the grid, as he had been concentrating on evaluating prototype components.

Gardner mentioned that the day had been challenging due to the unfavorable weather conditions during FP1.

"Fortunately, we experienced some stable conditions this afternoon. The time I missed in FP1 would have been helpful for reacquainting myself with the bike and the tires, and for getting back up to speed."

"On the whole, the day went reasonably well. The key takeaway is that we're testing the new components and gathering valuable information that Yamaha can utilize to guide the development of the 2025 motorcycle."

Kazutoshi Seki, who leads the test team, mentioned that despite some unfavorable weather conditions earlier in the day, they went ahead with the testing as scheduled. He noted that they managed to make significant progress, particularly in the afternoon.

This weekend, Remy's two YZR-M1 motorcycles are equipped with several prototype components designed for 2025. The goal is to conduct a comprehensive assessment of these parts. The sessions tomorrow will be dedicated to gathering data that will contribute to the bike's ongoing development.

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