Tension at breaking point in the Yamaha garage: Quartararo reveals the inside story

Tensions between Fabio Quartararo and Yamaha escalated during the MotoGP weekend at Aragon. The relationship between the French rider and the Iwata factory has reached its breaking point, even though they’ll have to coexist for another nine Grands Prix. Then it will be time for ‘El Diablo’ to start a new chapter with Honda, in an effort to turn his career around. In the meantime, however, the situation in the garage is getting really heated.

“I don’t want to lend a hand anymore” with the bike’s development. Those were Quartararo’s all-too-explicit words after the race at MotorLand. The Nice-born rider has long made no secret of his unhappiness with his current situation and with the M1’s issues, which has been in full crisis since adopting the V4 engine. His best result this MotoGP season is 5th place in Barcelona, and then nothing. His 15th place in the standings with a meager haul of 55 points speaks volumes. It’s certainly not an unprecedented situation, but after Aragon there was another painful rift. “For the future, I’m not able to help. And for personal reasons, I don’t want to help.”

In fact, there’s more to it between Fabio Quartararo and Yamaha; it’s not just about disappointing on-track performances. The Japanese manufacturer refused to carry out the Pirelli tests with the Frenchman, which were scheduled for the Monday after the Austrian Grand Prix. Since many riders will switch manufacturers at the end of the season, only a few took part in the Pirelli tire tests at Brno.

Pecco Bagnaia had already complained about this at the start of this MotoGP season. But, according to some reports, there could be more riders in action in Austria. That’s not the case for Quartararo, who has already received a negative response from Yamaha. Therefore, he won’t be able to take part.

Consequently, Fabio says he has no intention of helping his brand develop the bike for next year. “To clarify the situation, here’s the point… I don’t know if I should say it, but I’ll say it anyway: I wanted to do the tests in Austria,” he stated at Aragon. “Unfortunately, Yamaha doesn’t want me to use Pirelli tires. I wanted to do something, but they’re not allowing it. Personally, I don’t want to develop the 2027 bike.”

Yamaha’s decision is highly questionable and could backfire. In Brno, in June, KTM chose to put Pedro Acosta on its 850cc prototype for the Pirelli tests, despite his agreement with Ducati for the next two years. Despite two last-place finishes at Silverstone and Aragon, Quartararo remains Yamaha’s best rider in the standings and in recent years has exceeded the bike’s potential. This situation could jeopardize the brand’s progress ahead of the next MotoGP season.

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