Neil Hodgson saw exactly why Fabio Quartararo is ‘begging’ Yamaha to bring one upgrade before his Spanish GP Sprint crash

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Fabio Quartararo gave Yamaha their first pole position since 2022 at the Grand Prix of Spain, yet his lead in Saturday’s Sprint Race lasted under two laps before crashing out.

A fantastic late lap in Q2 saw Quartararo terminate the stranglehold that Marc Marquez has enjoyed in qualifying since joining Ducati. The Frenchman denied the Spaniard by just 0.033 seconds to hand Yamaha their first P1 start since his pole at the 2022 Indonesian Grand Prix.

Yet, after denying Marquez a fifth-straight pole to open the 2025 MotoGP season at Jerez at the Spanish GP on Saturday morning, Quartararo could not also deny the 32-year-old a fifth-straight Sprint win. He crashed whilst trying to deny the championship leader on Lap 2 of 12.

Fabio Quartararo’s Spanish GP Sprint crash showed why he is ‘begging’ Yamaha to develop a V4 engine

Quartararo crashed trying to tough it out around the outside at Turn 6 after Marquez bolted down Jerez’s back straight to level the Yamaha rider. But being only one metre off the racing line was enough for the 26-year-old to lose the front of the bike, and crash out of the Sprint.

How easily Marquez pulled alongside Quartararo to claim the inside for T6 also showed Neil Hodgson exactly why the Frenchman is ‘begging’ Yamaha to develop a V4 engine as fast as possible. Yamaha are the sole MotoGP manufacturer who still have an inline-four engine.

READ MORE: Everything to know about Fabio Quartararo from net worth to career stats

It is not the only area the Nice native wants the Iwata crew to improve with the YZR-M1. Yet while Quartararo says the rear of Yamaha’s bike lacks responsiveness, running an inline-four over a V4 engine is their biggest drawback given Ducati et al’s power advantage on straights.

Hodgson told TNT Sports 2 (26/04, 14:04): “Unfortunately, the speed difference is so great. He is slightly wide, he’s sort of being greedy there. He’s not prepared to go wide and lose a load of time, and he’s paid the ultimate price. But you could see how hard it was for him.

“How do you defend when you have such a speed disadvantage? And that’s why Quartararo is begging Yamaha to develop this V4 even quicker.”

Yamaha are developing a prototype V4 engine and could debut it in 2025

Quartararo’s last-gasp Spanish GP pole lap proved to be far from enough for the Frenchman to hold off the threat of Marquez in the Sprint Race on Saturday. The M1 not having enough power to keep the Desmosedici that Marquez races behind left the Frenchman vulnerable.

It is thus also unlikely that Quartararo can end his droughts back to the 2023 Indonesian GP for his and Yamaha’s last Grand Prix podium, plus the 2022 Grand Prix of Germany for their most recent win. It may also be some time before he gets a V4 engine and can battle again.

But Yamaha are developing a V4 engine and could debut it before the regulation changes in 2027 cut the power from 1,000cc down to 850cc. Yamaha managing director Paolo Pavesio has also confirmed that they could race a V4 engine before the end of the 2025 season, too.

“Yes, this I can say is our target,” Pavesio has told the MotoGP website. “If we are capable to achieve the target we will see.

“We want to be ready for a wildcard, so we want to be ready with Augusto [Fernandez] being on track really benchmarking our V4. If our new bike will be good enough and faster than the current bike, there is the possibility of racing with it next year.”