Yamaha skips Qatar, and Quartararo risks paying for a decision that wasn’t his: points deduction possible

Yamaha’s withdrawal from the Qatar GP could prove costly even for those who did not make the decision. Among the sanctions the Iwata-based manufacturer could face for declining to travel to Lusail is the loss of points in all three MotoGP World Championship standings: riders, teams and constructors. This possibility shifts the problem from company executives to the garages—and ultimately to Fabio Quartararo.

Yamaha’s decision, which also involves satellite team Pramac, had been known for days, as had the promoter’s reaction, with possible sanctions quickly being mentioned (we covered it in Yamaha rebels and will not race in Qatar: MotoGP Group threatens sanctions. Now, however, the possible consequences are beginning to take concrete shape.

This was no spur-of-the-moment decision. The Japanese manufacturer was aware of its contractual obligations to compete in the championship and of the consequences of missing an event. In its official statement, Yamaha explained that, given the situation in the Middle East, it had found no sufficient reason to change the company-wide travel restrictions in force. The assurances offered by MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group and the Qatari organizers were not enough to secure an exemption.

The result is a delicate situation for those who govern the world championship: punishing a manufacturer that says it acted to protect its staff. Meanwhile, the FIM’s position remains unclear, after it came under fire for its silence during the days of the crisis.

In sporting terms, the impact on the manufacturer and the teams would be relatively minor. Yamaha is already last in the constructors’ standings, with 105 points—73 fewer than Honda. In the teams’ standings, Yamaha Factory Racing and Pramac occupy the bottom spots, with LCR in ninth, 21 points ahead of Iwata’s factory team.

The individual standings are a different matter. Quartararo is fourteenth with 79 points, while Alex Rins is twentieth with 29. At Pramac, Jack Miller is nineteenth with 31 points, while Toprak Razgatlioglu has already ended his season due to a shoulder injury. If points were also deducted in the riders’ championship, they would be penalized for a decision made at the highest levels of the company.

For now, however, there is nothing to suggest the governing body will take this route. The matter is now in the hands of the disciplinary bodies: any decision they make will determine whether Yamaha alone bears the cost of withdrawing from Qatar, or whether its riders will also pay the price.

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