Fabio Quartararo teases “something special” for home French MotoGP

Fabio Quartararo would have finished fifth in the recent Spanish MotoGP if he had repeated his race time on the Inline Yamaha the previous year.

Instead, while Alex Marquez improved by 7.5s for back-to-back victories, Quartararo was 20-seconds slower than his 2025 runner-up result, finishing in 14th place on the new V4.

It was a worrying deficit, given that the tight Jerez circuit helped negate the new bike’s lack of outright engine performance.

However, Quartararo looked more competitive at the Monday test, where he credited improved front-end feeling after setting the seventh fastest lap time.

The Frenchman now heads to his home Le Mans round on the back of that result, where he will also have “something special in store” for the fans.

"Le Mans is always one of the most special weekends of the year for me,” said Quartararo, who took pole position last year, followed by fourth in the Sprint and then a crash in the dry-wet grand prix.

“The support from the fans is incredible and gives me extra motivation every time I ride here.

“After the work we did in Jerez, I'm curious to see how things feel on this track – and I also have something special in store for the fans this race weekend, so I'm looking forward to it."

That surprise will presumably involve some kind of special livery for what is set to be Quartararo's final French Grand Prix appearance as a Yamaha rider, before a TBC switch to Honda for 2027.

In terms of technical changes, it is still unclear when a V4 engine upgrade will materialise.

The factory reported trying a ‘chassis they had already been using during the Spanish GP weekend as well as different aero packages, a different swing arm, and various set-ups for the chassis and the electronics’ at the Jerez test.

The aero parts included a return of last year’s tri-plane front wing.

"The Jerez Test gave us a welcome opportunity to evaluate several items in a structured way, and the riders' feedback was encouraging,” said team director Massimo Meregalli.

“We now arrive in Le Mans with some possible updates that should help us continue this process, depending on the riders' preferences.

“If the riders choose to use the new items, this Grand Prix will serve as a reference point for confirming our findings from the Jerez Test.

“We are looking forward to getting back to work. With a back-to-back schedule from Le Mans straight to Catalunya, followed by another IRTA test, we will have ample opportunity to collect data and cross-check our findings."

Quartararo’s team-mate Alex Rins was just 21st at the test.

"I really enjoy riding at Le Mans. It's a circuit where I've made good memories in the past,” said Rins, a Moto2 winner at Le Mans.

“The Jerez Test was positive and gave us new ideas, so this weekend is about continuing that work and seeing how the bike behaves here.

“I'm motivated to keep building step by step and push to be closer to the front.”