After a tough start to the MotoGP season, Fabio Quartararo finally found reason to smile at Yamaha by securing his best points finish of 2026 at the French Grand Prix. The home hero crossed the line in sixth place in the main race at Le Mans, a huge improvement from his previous best of 14th this year, following a fifth-place qualifying effort.
Friday had been grim for Quartararo and Yamaha, as they “went in the wrong direction.” But the weekend turned around after the progress made during the Jerez test post-Spanish GP. Quartararo continued using the 2025 aero package he tested there, and the positive feeling carried over into Saturday and Sunday.
“For me, at the Jerez test, I had the same feeling as today. I was quite consistent, I made great lap times; the feeling was there,” Quartararo said after the sprint race.
He clarified that the improved “feeling” didn’t automatically make the bike faster, but it allowed him to push harder and ride smarter. Managing tires and brakes became easier, and braking stood out as a strength in the grand prix. He was also the top finisher on soft tires—a risky choice given wear concerns.
“Yeah, you know, we had to be really smooth on the braking, but in the end that is where I can try to make the difference, on the braking. I didn’t feel like that for a long time until today, even if we know the potential of our bike is still very low.”
“So, I could push myself 100% and I think that was quite nice, especially on the opening lap when everything is more close and it’s more easy to make an overtake.”
Repeating a sentiment from his difficult 2025 season, Quartararo said he wants to keep the base setup unchanged and rely on riding adjustments until new parts arrive. “We always try to find performance with the settings, but… until we really have our better package, new items, we will not change the bike. So I think that right now, I just don’t want to touch the bike. And when the team brings some item to test, we will test it and let’s see if we have some more performance.”
Despite his upbeat outlook, Quartararo remained realistic when asked about optimism for the future. “No, I mean, optimistic, no. Because in the end this [personal improvement] is something that, you know… if it was more performance on the bike, [every Yamaha rider] would have used. But it’s just a matter of feeling, for myself. I feel the bike a bit better. Let’s see in the other layouts, but what I’m 100% sure of is that I can push.”
