Fabio Quartararo ‘not really’ close in race trim, Enea Bastianini ‘pulled away a lot’
Fabio Quartararo says Yamaha still has lots of work to do after watching Ducati dominate the Qatar test once again.
2021 MotoGP champion Fabio Quartararo was given a first-hand look at Ducati’s pace over race distance as he struggled to keep up with Enea Bastianini.
The Yamaha rider finished the two-day test all the way down in 14th, two places ahead of team-mate Alex Rins.
A second off the pace when it came to time attack performance, Quartararo made it clear that more is needed.
“It was good to see the 1m 51s but we are still far from the top,” Quartararo told MotoGP.com. “We have a lot of work to do.
“Hopefully we can find a solution during the season. We are still far away but it was positive.”
In terms of race pace, Quartararo was also down on performance compared with several Ducati riders, as he followed Bastianini during a race simulation.
Asked if they’ve made a step forward to 2023 with their race pace, Quartararo stated: “Not really. I was behind Bastianini on the sprint race simulation and he pulled away quite a lot.
“We have to make a step in some areas but we have to think positively and try to find a solution.
“Hopefully in the next two months we can make a step forward.”
With very little separating Quartararo and Rins, the French rider said similar feedback will only help Yamaha going forward.
“I think we have similar feedback and the thing is we can find the limit quite easily on our bike,” said Quartararo.
“He’s only two tenths behind me and it’s something we have to improve together. We have to make a lot of laps and Yamaha has to understand exactly that.”
