Yamaha MotoGP rider Fabio Quartararo says that the engine improvements the Japanese manufacturer brought to its M1 for 2023 are “still not enough” to topple Ducati.
The 2021 premier class world champion was beaten to a second successive crown last year by factory Ducati rider Francesco Bagnaia, despite Quartararo holding a stiff 91-point advantage over the Italian with only ten races remaining.
Five wins for Bagnaia across this period helped slash his huge deficit to a 17-point success in the end, though Quartararo’s own struggles – which saw him only stand on the podium twice in the final ten events – were the main catalyst for his championship defeat, his ire mainly being directed at his M1’s lack of engine power.
Despite Yamaha having brought some improvements in this area for 2023, Quartararo still reckons that the gains are not enough to become the trailblazers ahead of Ducati, adding that the manufacturer needs to improve its in-season development programme if it is to fight for ultimate glory this season.
“The engine is what I’ve asked for (to focus on in further development),” said Quartararo.
“We’ve made a step forward (in this area) but it is still not enough, they (Yamaha) work hard and if they keep going I think they can further improve this but we are still far away from what we have to have in the bike.
“During the last day of the test I was able to make great laps, two laps in a row I could do the same one – we are still missing something to Ducati because on that last day all the Ducati’s were in the top eight.
“Of course we are still lacking something but everybody is on the limit and it’s all about details, so we have to make steps during the year.
“This is also something we struggled with in previous years in that as soon as we start the season, we have no more evolution to the end so to be on top we need to make sure to bring further development right until the end.”
