Everyone against Yamaha: Quartararo’s middle-finger gesture and a team garage in deep crisis

The MotoGP season has yet to begin, but Yamaha’s riders already seem to be counting down the days until it ends. In winter testing the M1, with its new V4 engine, lagged clearly behind its competitors. Fabio Quartararo is tired of the situation and is almost eager to embark on his next adventure (likely with Honda).

If anyone thought a more powerful V4 engine would be enough to return to the top of MotoGP, the Thailand test showed the crisis runs deeper. The riders ended preseason with an image unworthy of the Iwata factory: sharing a single bike because the new engines had run out. After a winter marked by reliability issues, Fabio Quartararo and Alex Rins found themselves unable to use their two M1s. This sudden setback comes just when they need to rack up as many kilometers as possible to fine-tune the 2026 prototype before the World Championship begins.

While technical issues cropped up in Sepang, in Buriram there was a lack of foresight regarding component mileage. In other words, they ran out of engines before completing the planned on-track work. “We decided to use only one bike on the second day. The reason is that on the other two factory team bikes we had reached the maximum engine mileage by the end of the first day.”

Logistics also hampered the smooth running of the MotoGP tests. The team is waiting on a shipment of materials that did not arrive in time for the two-day session in Thailand. This lack of new components forced Yamaha’s crew to preserve the few parts still in good condition on the bikes to avoid risking serious damage.

Performance-wise, the news isn’t good for fans of the tuning fork brand either. On average, the Yamaha M1 is still about 10 km/h slower than the Ducatis and Aprilias on the straights. Yamaha’s only lifeline is the concessions rule. As the manufacturer with the worst results, it’s the only one allowed to develop its engine during the season, while Honda has already moved up a tier and frozen its design. An evolution of the V4 is on the horizon, but there’s no release date yet.

The reality is that Yamaha is hitting rock bottom. Before the championship reaches the European circuits, the team will have to make do with an engine that isn’t fast enough, making everything harder and setting up an uphill start both psychologically and competitively...

Not to mention the riders’ morale, now in pieces. Fabio Quartararo was caught on MotoGP cameras flipping off his bike on track—an image that perfectly captures the Frenchman’s despair, as he returned to the box with a devastated look. “I think having a competitive bike is important for the factory too... Losing about 10 km/h on the straight is frustrating here, as on any other track. In MotoGP, having good top speed is crucial. We are almost a second slower than last year,” said the Nice-born rider. “What’s certain is that it will take months before there’s significant progress.”

Echoing him were the comments from his garage mate Alex Rins. “Right now it seems the riders are ready, we are ready, but the bike isn’t yet.” During winter testing, no Yamaha rider (including Pramac) went out twice on the same bike. “We didn’t have enough spare parts to carry the new package for everyone,” explained the Spaniard, and they were taking a risk with every run. “They told us that if we wanted to install it (the new package), they would do it, but knowing that if we crashed, that would be the end.”