MotoGP Austria: Quartararo keeps an eye on the championship

08/17/2021 |
Christina Bulpett |
MotoGP

Image: GeeBee Pictures

Monster Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo fought for victory at the Austrian GP in Spielberg on Sunday before the rain spoiled the Frenchman’s advance.

The championship leader admitted his first real thought of the championship was on Sunday as he traversed the Spielberg Circuit in difficult conditions, when a near-tangle with Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez brought reality into focus.

Quartararo finished the second Austrian adventure in seventh place – after making up six places on the last lap when his wet bike setup took full effect – and leads the overall standings by a comfortable 47 points. Ducatis Pecco Bagnaia is now level on points with the reigning world champion Joan Mir in second place.

“For the first time this year, I thought a little about the championship,” admitted Quartararo on Sunday evening.

“To be honest, I was very risky and didn’t want to make a stupid crash. I almost had one when Marc fell. You can see on TV that I almost touched him, it was the moment to think a little about the championship.

“We arrived at this track with a 34 point lead, we leave with 47 points, so we take advantage and I think we never expect that. I think our point in the championship is pretty good now, so I want to keep going.

“It was definitely much better than last year,” he continued with a view to the races in Spielberg.

“Last year we had problems with the brakes, the bike, the electronics and this year we’re struggling a bit with the top speed.

“But my feeling when driving was unbelievable for me and I think I learned a lot today. The last few laps in particular were bad for us, but I’m happy about my dry race in Austria because I think we were able to fight for victory in a dry condition and that’s incredible for us here.

“I can’t wait to be on the other tracks. Every time I ride the bike I feel like I need to improve and be faster. I’m not just looking at the table and trying to go slowly to look at my rivals so I think that was important. “

After two weeks in the Styrian mountains, the MotoGP championship goes to Great Britain and a route that brings fond memories for the 22-year-old.

“I think we have the opportunity to fight for victory there because I think my rookie year I had two big moments that changed my career a bit – it was Jerez 2019 and the Silverstone weekend when I did was much faster than usual.

“If I am in good shape, I can of course fight for a great result. Then I’ll keep my fingers crossed, pray for good weather and think that we can achieve a great result. ”Quartararo concluded.