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Fabio Quartararo can finally breathe a sigh of relief at the end of the Austin GP. After a difficult start to the season, and with a Yamaha struggling to keep pace with all the Ducatis on the track, the French rider is finally back on the podium, precisely on the third step, since the second was stolen away from him by Luca Marini’s Ducati, after overtaking on the straight. This is something that's going to worry Yamaha in the days to come. But Fabio is now 7th in the standings with 34 points and, with Bagnaia tormented by unexpected zeros, the World Championship is just beginning.
Since the start of this season, you always pushed hard and raced to the limit of your Yamaha. This podium must definitely be liberating after a difficult start to the championship.
“In the first two races, our weak point was the first lap,” Fabio explains. “But, finally, yesterday and today, we managed to be more aggressive in that stage of the race. Talking to Luca Marini before, we agreed on how crucial it has become to be in the top positions after the first laps, and then be able to aim for the podium. If you stay in the group, the race becomes much more difficult. You lose too much time in overtaking. So, today, we definitely managed the race intelligently.”
This track is very physically demanding, but also mentally. Maintaining your concentration and making no mistakes probably isn’t easy. A lot of riders today didn’t finish the race.
“That’s true. When Luca overtook me on the straight today, I had to stay calm. It was frustrating, and it’s difficult to stay calm during those moments.”
His Ducati seemed like it was flying today on that straight. Did he catch you by surprise?
“I thought I’d be able to keep my distance shorter, honestly, but Luca came in with a much better pace than I did at that stage of the race. So I decided not to take any chances and make sure I get to the podium, keeping Maverick’s Aprilia, which was approaching at a distance.”
The next two circuits on the calendar, Jerez and Le Mans, have historically always been favorable for Yamaha. In this perspective, how important is this podium in terms of trust?
“Fortunately, the straight is shorter in Jerez, and the Ducati will be less favored from that point of view. I think those are tracks where I’ve always been strong in the past. It’s been like that since my first year, so I hope to be able to get some good qualifications. Starting from the front row, we’ll get the chance to get excellent results.”
