How Fabio Quartararo responded when asked whether he’d join a satellite team like Marc Marquez

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Fabio Quartararo is openly considering a move away from Yamaha, with his contract due to expire next year. Ahead of the Indonesian Grand Prix, he was asked whether he could join a satellite team like Marc Marquez.

Marquez willingly forfeited factory status at the end of 2023 when he broke his contract with Honda to join Gresini. He knew that if he delivered for the Ducati satellite, he could join Luigi Dall’Igna’s team.

That’s exactly how it panned out, and Marquez was world champion within two years of taking what looked like a mighty gamble. Neil Hodgson says Gresini and VR46 could offer Quartararo a better bike than Yamaha.

Coming into the Mandalika weekend, Quartararo is eighth in the championship – above Gresini’s Fermin Aldeguer – but that perhaps paints an overly positive picture of Yamaha. The other three M1 riders are positioned between 18th and 21st, leaving them bottom of the constructors’.

Fabio Quartararo says ‘we deserve a factory team’ when asked about copying Marc Marquez

In an interview with DAZN, Quartararo explained that Marquez moved to Gresini ‘when everyone had a contract’. He left Honda midway through a cycle.

With opportunities limited, Marquez replaced Fabio Di Giannantonio and raced alongside his brother. But there’s at least one seat available at every team for 2027.

Ducati are interested in Quartararo, understandably given his performance levels, but that move may be contingent upon Marquez leaving. This appears unlikely.

Meanwhile, Honda are ‘incredibly’ keen on Quartararo, though this would represent more of a risk. Like their Japanese rivals, Alberto Puig’s squad are building back up from a period of decline.

“Marc joined Gresini at a time when everyone had a contract and it was between contracts,” said Quartararo. “Of course, I’ll have to make a decision. We still have to look.”

“It’s still very early. With the potential we have, I think we deserve a factory team, but we always have to evaluate things and see how Yamaha works on the new bike.”

Expert predicts whether Yamaha can challenge Ducati with V4 engine

As Quartararo alludes to above, the performance of Yamaha’s V4 engine will be critical in determining his future. The bike made its Grand Prix debut at Misano in the hands of wildcard Augusto Fernandez, but the full-time riders have been testing it too.

Quartararo feels Yamaha are behind with their development and has made that clear in his interviews. Whether or not this is a tactic to deliberately put the team under pressure, it underlines his impatience.

Pramac’s Paolo Campinoti believes Quartararo could compete with Marquez. But since his commanding lead over Francesco Bagnaia slipped away midway through 2022, he hasn’t had the machinery to fight Ducati.

Hodgson doubts Yamaha will challenge Ducati even with their new engine because it’s ‘too big a step’ for 2026. Quartararo doesn’t necessarily need to compete for the title next year, but the team need to give him confidence that he can win again in their colours.