Fabio Quartararo: Yamaha feels “like I’m riding on the wet” in early MotoGP laps

Fabio Quartararo gave a frank assessment of Yamaha’s ongoing race struggles following a tough Sunday at the Dutch MotoGP.

The Frenchman who qualified on pole as Assen, felt like he was riding in the wet during the opening laps, then was unable to overtake slower riders after taking evasive action to avoid a fallen Fermin Aldeguer.

“The first laps were a complete disaster for us. We have zero grip,” Quartararo said. “Especially in the first laps, my bike looks like I’m riding on the wet. Sliding, I cannot follow, and it's a bit frustrating.

“Then in the second part of the race, I could go much, much faster - but I’m not able to overtake.”

The end result was a tenth-place finish in the wheeltracks of Enea Bastianini’s KTM.

“I know my potential as a rider and I know how fast I can go,” he said. “Realistically, we know that when we go into the race, we are not going to make great results. It’s difficult, because we cannot make an overtake.”

Quartararo explained that Yamaha’s acceleration from slow corners is a major weakness, and becomes magnified the longer the straight.

“Basically, when we have to start from a really slow corner onto the straight, it's really bad,” he said.

“We have zero grip and we don't really know how to use the power. So basically they [other riders] are exiting with - not no wheelie - but the correct amount of wheelie. They have a lot of power. We just have sliding, no power, wheelie.

“So they pull away in first and second gears. And when they get to third, fourth, fifth, sixth, we miss a lot of horsepower."

Spinning in sixth gear "not the best"

Despite consistently outperforming his Yamaha team-mates, Quartararo insisted the atmosphere among the Monster and Pramac riders remains unified.

“We are a team and we are all working together to try to find the best situation possible,” he said. “It’s true that qualifying is my really strong point, and I’m able to extract the maximum from the bike.

“But I know what I miss to go even faster. 

"I mean, spinning in sixth gear before you arrive at a fast corner is not the best... We know we need much better things to go faster.”

Quartararo has taken four poles this season, returning to the MotoGP podium for the first time since 2023 with second place at Jerez.

However, he suffered a cruel ride-height failure while leading at Silverstone, the second of three non-scores in a row, while 14th at Mugello and 10th in Assen means he has slipped to eleventh in the world championship.

Team-mate Alex Rins is the next best Yamaha, in 17th, with the Japanese manufacturer, currently developing a V4 engine for likely use in 2026, bottom of the MotoGP constructors’ standings.