Marco Bezzecchi
Michael Laverty feels Fabio Quartararo “just lacks patience” after hearing what the Frenchman said about Yamaha’s new V4 MotoGP bike following the test at Misano.
The 26-year-old had his first real chance to get some laps on the board with the Yamaha V4 engine during the post-race test after this month’s San Marino Grand Prix. It was the second time that Quartararo rode the bike after Yamaha tested their V4 in Barcelona a week earlier.
Yamaha used the San Marino GP and the official in-season test at Misano to get crucial data ahead of the V4 YZR-M1 making a full debut in the 2026 MotoGP season. Test rider Augusto Fernandez gave the V4 M1 its public Yamaha debut as a wildcard rider in the San Marino GP.
Fabio Quartararo’s criticism of Yamaha’s V4-engined bike at Misano is ‘not fantastic’
But Quartararo was not happy with the progress Yamaha have made with the V4, compared to their current inline four M1. The 2021 champion even claimed that the V4 bike is “worse” than its predecessor, and he did not see “any improvement” where Yamaha “really need” it.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Fabio Quartararo from net worth to career stats
Quartararo had a face like thunder after testing the Yamaha V4 at Misano, as well, and what the long-time Yamaha rider had to say after the test did not encourage Laverty. But Pramac rider Jack Miller offered a more positive assessment and Laverty knows this is just the start.
Laverty said on TNT Sports 2 (26/09, 03:09): “The comments from Fabio weren’t fantastic on the day. He wanted more. But the bike is in such its infancy. It really doesn’t have the horsepower that they will gain from it.
“Obviously, they’re still a little bit safe in terms of the engine development. But there was more positivity from Jack Miller from the comments on the V4 allowing them to decelerate with the rear wheel, which is so important.
“The two cylinders to the rear, and the way that the V4 works, to use the strengths of the engine [and] of the Michelin tyres. There’s definitely a lot of positivity around it. But I was a little underwhelmed after the comments from Fabio.
“But I think he just lacks patience at the moment. He wants to be back and have a machine that he can race Marc Marquez on, and he didn’t feel like the V4 was as big a step forward as he was hoping.
“But I think it’s such early days with a brand new motorcycle that I think there are still a lot of positives [they can] take from the test and the opening race weekend for Fernandez as a wildcard rider.”
Fabio Quartararo will not be satisfied if Yamaha’s V4 bike is not a race-winning engine
Like Laverty, Miller knows the V4 that Yamaha tested at Misano is not the end product and that the Iwata natives will likely have a different package to try in the post-season Valencia test in November. The Pramac pilot also noted that he thinks Yamaha are “in the ballpark”.
Test rider Andrea Dovizioso noticed a difference between how Yamaha’s V4 and inline four bikes act under braking during his private outings with their new bike, too. The Ducati hero claims the V4 bike instantly gave him a more natural feeling of what he likes under braking.
But Sylvain Guintoli fears Yamaha face a challenge to find the final tenths of a second they need with a V4 to give Quartararo a bike with which he can fight for another title. The Nice native has not even won a Grand Prix since the 2022 German GP at the Sachsenring, as well.
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