Yamaha M1 too limited: Miller explains the flaw that held Quartararo back in races

Miller had words of praise for Quartararo and also explained which flaw of the Yamaha held him back.

Yamaha’s 2025 season in MotoGP has not been thrilling, and Fabio Quartararo has repeatedly expressed his dissatisfaction. For him, it’s hard to accept not being able to consistently fight for podiums and wins, after being world champion in 2021 and runner-up in 2022. Even though there have been a few small signs of improvement, considering he took 5 pole positions and stood on the podium 3 times, it’s still not enough.

In 2026 the Iwata manufacturer will field the prototype with a V4 engine, and it will be interesting to see how it goes. Quartararo didn’t seem very enthusiastic after the very first tests, while Jack Miller of the Prima Pramac team tried to look on the bright side and stay hopeful. We can only wait for the pre-season tests and the first grands prix of 2026 to get an idea.

Interviewed by Crash.net, Miller praised Quartararo’s one-lap prowess and also explained which aspect of the Yamaha M1 with an inline-four engine severely limited him in races: "He’s special. Over a single lap, in terms of talent, it oozes out of him. It’s just a shame the bike hasn’t been much fun to ride. It wasn’t very intuitive when you were in a pack. You had to ride very precisely, and in terms of line changes and things like that, it didn’t digest them. You couldn’t do it. So he wasn’t able to brake a little later or square off the corner to protect his line."

The French rider is a great late braker, but with the Iwata bike it was difficult to fully exploit this quality: "If you want to try an overtake or something like that," Miller explains, "it’s pretty much impossible, unless there’s a mistake. That’s why I believe that, with his qualifying, if he had a bike with which to attack or defend a bit better, life would be a lot easier."

Quartararo has stated several times that the M1 lacked rear grip, a flaw that affected corner exit and thus made straight-line performance more complicated, where Yamaha didn’t have a super explosive engine. Improving grip and straight-line performance are among the goals for 2026. We’ll see if the situation changes with the new V4 prototype.

On Miller’s side, it should be noted that his crew chief Giacomo Guidotti has flown to Japan to closely follow the bike assembly and other operations of Yamaha’s racing department.