Underperforming Alex Rins blasts Yamaha in eye-catching social media post, ‘we get cooked’…

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Yamaha have endured a difficult start to the 2025 MotoGP season. The Qatar Grand Prix exposed a key weakness with their bike.

Fabio Quartararo gave the Japanese manufacturer early signs of encouragement as he qualified on the front row for the first time since the 2022 Dutch Grand Prix. The Frenchman lined up next to the Marquez brothers in third.

After battling intensely during the Sprint race, Quartararo came home to finish an impressive fifth. However, Sunday’s race was not as successful as he finished eighth, but was promoted to seventh after Maverick Vinales was penalised.

The 2021 MotoGP champion was Yamaha’s top rider by some margin, but there were clear frustrations despite recording their best result of the season. Quartararo says Yamaha’s braking strength was ‘pointless’ as he was unable to overtake his rivals.

Jack Miller and Augosto Fernandez both retired from the Qatar Grand Prix to mark a miserable weekend for Pramac. Quartararo’s teammate Alex Rins came home to score points in P12, but frustrations were evident.

Alex Rins blasts Yamaha on social media after getting ‘cooked’ on the straights in Qatar

Rins has been struggling in MotoGP since his heavy crash at the 2023 Italian Grand Prix. The Spaniard is still suffering the effects of the accident, as he was seen using a crutch earlier in the season.

The 29-year-old has not had good fortune at Yamaha since moving from Honda in 2024. He scored just 31 points last season as he finished 16th in the standings.

In 2025, Rins has struggled to find performance. While he has scored points in the last three races, his best result has been 11th in Argentina and Austin.

The Spanaird qualified an encouraging ninth in Qatar but fell back to 12th in the Sprint and the main race. Posting on Instagram following the event, Rins aimed his frustrations at his team as he was ‘riding at 200% each lap’ but still got ‘cooked’ on the straights.

“It’s hard to do more when we need the rider in front to make a mistake to pass him and we get cooked on the straights,” he wrote.

I’m riding at 200% each lap and not even a huge stone impact in the arm stopped me, but the maximum we could do is a P12 and that’s not enough for me.”

READ MORE: Everything to know about Alex Rins from net worth to career stats

Where do Yamaha need to improve if they want to compete with their rivals?

It is clear Yamaha have issues to fix if they want to be competitive again in MotoGP. The manufacturer are level on points with KTM at the bottom of the standings.

Quartararo says Yamaha’s ‘biggest problem’ is grip – the team have struggled to find a solution ‘for years.’ The Frenchman believes they can go faster if they find it, but they are clearly still lacking in that area.

Quartararo also wants a ‘big change’ to Yamaha’s MotoGP program, stating it ‘must be done’ ahead of the 2026 season. Taking Pramac from Ducati fresh off their title win with Jorge Martin was a good step.

But with the Frenchman and Miller being Yamaha’s only hopes of a top result, their progress is currently not enough. They have to find solutions to their issues, while Rins also needs to find better consistency.