Marco Bezzecchi
Fabio Quartararo once again led Yamaha’s hopes during the 2025 MotoGP Hungarian Grand Prix, but he finished 15.473s behind Ducati ace Marc Marquez at Balaton Park.
Marquez was in a league of his own as MotoGP made its maiden visit to the track near Lake Balaton last weekend. The 32-year-old swept the Sprint and Grand Prix wins for the seventh round in succession. No rider has beaten Marquez in any race since May’s British Grand Prix.
Quartararo should have won the British GP back in round seven of the 22 scheduled for the 2025 season. But the 26-year-old endured heartbreak when his ride height device failed at Silverstone, making him retire from a comfortable lead in search of his first win since 2022.
Silverstone also remains the last track where Quartararo and Yamaha truly challenged at the front of the field. The Frenchman’s P10 in the Hungarian GP kept his average finish from the seven rounds since the British GP at P9.8, with his P4 in the attritional German GP an outlier.
Fabio Quartararo’s Balaton Park outburst raises questions about Yamaha’s resources
Yamaha have particularly struggled since MotoGP’s summer break, with Quartararo’s P15 in the Austrian Grand Prix the Iwata outfit’s best result at the Red Bull Ring. He finished 25.256 seconds behind Marquez, as the Ducati racer tasted glory in the foothills of the Styrian Alps.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Fabio Quartararo from net worth to career stats
Once again being the top rider on the YZR-M1 at Balaton Park, yet ending the Hungarian GP in P10 and 15.473s off the lead, left Quartararo in a very downbeat mood. He even hit out at Yamaha for not having updates, having had the same chassis since February’s Sepang Test.
Quartararo said, via quotes by Cycle World: “I talk to them every day. I ask, ‘Why don’t we try new components? Why don’t we have new ideas?’
“It seems to me we have the same chassis from Sepang testing, [and the] same swing-arm for a long time. On grip, we are really far away, and we need solutions.”
Cycle World also adds that Quartararo’s outburst about Yamaha’s inability to bring upgrades echoes fears that multiple MotoGP ‘insiders’ share about teams having a ‘lack of resources’. Quartararo is also not the only person to ask why Yamaha have failed to improve their grip.
Fabio Quartararo has been begging Yamaha for more grip for ages
Yamaha have brought occasional upgrades for the M1 so far this year, but the upgrades have clearly not been enough to keep Quartararo happy. He remains the Iwata team’s top rider in the standings by a mile on 109 points for P10 to Jack Miller (P17, 52) and Alex Rins (P19, 45).
Quartararo has wanted Yamaha to improve the M1’s grip for ages, having faced a “disaster” on the first lap of June’s Dutch Grand Prix. He also found overtaking to be impossible at the TT Circuit Assen, en route to finishing in P10 after having to avoid Fermin Aldeguer’s crash.
Part of the Nice native’s issues with overtaking also stems from Yamaha’s power deficiency as the last manufacturer still using an inline-four engine. Yamaha have confirmed that they will wildcard a V4 engine with test rider Augusto Fernandez at the San Marino Grand Prix.
Managing director Paolo Pavesio also admits it is “undeniable” that Yamaha are not “where we’d like to be”, with their win drought stretching back to Quartararo’s victory in the 2022 German GP. The 2021 MotoGP champion has secured four pole positions so far this season.
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