Quartararo Hot: Increases Lead at Grand Prix de France


The Grand Prix de France proved to be a difficult one, with rain delaying the start and mixed conditions during the 26 laps. PETRONAS Yamaha SRT’s Fabio Quartararo rode a smart race around the Le Mans circuit and managed to increase his championship lead, crossing the line ninth. Team-mate Franco Morbidelli was forced to retire after a Turn 4 crash on lap 19.

Quartararo struggled on the race start, which had been delayed, and found himself dropping through the field to fourth in the opening corners. With the championship in mind, the Frenchman kept his head and rode his own race. Although he found himself eleventh at the halfway point, Fabio made sure to keep his closest championship rivals behind him. Ensuring no mistakes were made in the final stages of his home GP, Quartararo crossed the line ninth and increased his championship lead to ten points.

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ABOVE: Quartararo and Morbidelli at Grand Prix de France 

Team-mate Morbidelli didn’t have the best opening lap, which was hampered by having to avoid another rider’s crash in the first corner, leaving the Italian 17th at the end of the first lap. Struggling to make progress in the wet conditions, Franco slipped down to 19th as the rain started to fall again. Unfortunately, a Turn 4 crash on lap 19 brought the French GP to an early conclusion for Morbidelli, who was forced to retire after due to a mechanical problem.

There will be no rest for PETRONAS Yamaha SRT, who have increased their lead in the teams’ standings, as they head to Spain to prepare for their tenth race of the year: the Gran Premio de Aragón (16-18 October).

Razlan Razali Team Principal That was unexpected; it was more about damage control for Fabio today. He is still leading the championship, increasing the gap to ten points. It was the best we could do today in very tricky conditions. When it is like this I think the best thing the riders can do is to stay on the bike and do the best they can.

Unfortunately Franco had to retire with some mechanical problems after a crash. We go to Aragon still leading both the riders’ and teams’ championships, although we know that the two races there are going to be even tougher for us, but we will be fighting every lap.

Fabio Quartararo #20 9th (+16.687) We were all on the grid about to start the race and then it started raining, which was disappointing. We knew dry conditions would have been better for us. It was a hard race but I’m happy because we never gave up fighting; on the last lap when Joan [Mir] overtook me I was able to get straight back past him. It was important to score as many points as possible and actually we were able to extend our lead slightly. We will see what will happen in Aragón but I’m really pleased with my first race in these tricky conditions. Being on pole position at home with the fans was really special, there were only 5,000 of them here but they really helped me.

Franco Morbidelli #21 DNF (+8 laps) I had a good start but unfortunately I was caught up in the incident with Valentino [Rossi], which lost me a lot of positions. From then on it was a really hard race, I had to take it step-by-step and find my rhythm. In the last ten laps when I decided to push a little bit more, to try to catch the group in front, I made a mistake in Turn 4 and lost the front end. It’s a shame because I think eighth or ninth position could have been possible, but the mistake was my fault and I haven’t scored any points. Apart from this mistake it has been a positive weekend and I was super fast, especially this morning. Now we need to take this speed to Aragón.

MotoGP Results – Le Mans – Race

POSRIDERNUMBERTEAMTIME/GAP
1Danilo Petrucci9Ducati Team45’54.736
2Alex Marquez73Repsol Honda Team+1.273
3Pol Espargaro44Red Bull KTM Factory Racing+1.711
4Andrea Dovizioso4Ducati Team+3.911
5Johann Zarco5Esponsorama Racing+4.310
6Miguel Oliveira88Red Bull KTM Tech 3+4.466
9Fabio Quartararo20PETRONAS Yamaha SRT+16.687
DNFFranco Morbidelli21PETRONAS Yamaha SRT+8 laps

View Full Results here

MotoGP Results – World Championship Standings

POSRIDERNUMBERTEAMTIME/GAP
1Fabio Quartararo20PETRONAS Yamaha SRT115
2Joan Mir36Team SUZUKI ECSTAR105
3Andrea Dovizioso4Ducati Team97
4Maverick Viñales12Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP96
5Takaaki Nakagami30LCR Honda IDEMITSU81
6Franco Morbidelli21PETRONAS Yamaha SRT77
Written by Alan Zurvas

Alan Zurvas is the founder and editor of Gay Car Boys, Australia's leading LGBTQI+ automotive publication. Before launching GCB in 2008, Alan's automotive writing was published in SameSame.com.au and the Star Observer. With over 16 years of hands-on car reviewing experience, Alan brings an honest, irreverent voice to every review — championing value and innovation over brand loyalty.


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