Yamaha boss details the ‘setbacks’ faced with developing the V4 engine for Fabio Quartararo

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Yamaha’s M1 MotoGP bike is well behind where they would like it to be on pure performance after the 2025 season.

They will be the first to admit that they haven’t met the standard they would like to, and it has compromised superstar rider Fabio Quartararo.

Now, he has a big decision to make about his future. Does he have enough faith in the Yamaha project to want to continue beyond 2026 and into the new regulations?

The Frenchman is expected to be a big player in the MotoGP rider market, but is likely to be willing to wait until a few races have unfolded next year to see what state his current project is in.

Yamaha are plotting an all-new line-up for 2027, and it would be a big change to be making ahead of a new set of rules.

However, Aprilia have already moved for Quartararo, and it’s likely that other manufacturers also will do so over the next few months.

READ MORE: Yamaha will derail their MotoGP operation for years to come if they keep Fabio Quartararo

Yamaha have faced ‘setbacks’ while developing the V4 engine in 2025

Keeping Quartararo could derail Yamaha as it could end up forcing them to introduce upgrades that might not be ready for their bike too soon.

He has applied a lot of pressure on the team to improve, threatening to leave unless his situation improves, which is understandable to a degree.

Quartararo is ‘complaining too much’, according to Paolo Pavesio, but team director Maio Meregalli has just shared how they have faced ‘setbacks’ with the new V4 engine – their last hope.

“Well, I can’t just say what. Those who have tried it, those who are working on it say that unfortunately, there have been a few setbacks that have prevented us from working as hard as we would’ve liked,” Meregalli told Moto.it.

“But it seems that the base, that bike came about quite well. The fact that in a month and a half, we managed to make the wildcards without any technical problems is already a lot.

“Because a year and a few months ago, Yamaha decided to do what we call plan B, to do this thing, and from there we all started working hard, and we started the engine when we said we would start it.”

READ MORE: Fabio Quartararo is hiding what he really thinks about Yamaha’s V4 bike after Valencia test

Why Fabio Quartararo needs to just leave Yamaha after 2026

There’s a strong argument to suggest that leaving Yamaha would be best for almost everyone involved in Quartararo’s situation.

He might be in the prime years of his career, and he’s wasting them on a bike, struggling to compete in the midfield at best.

At least on an Aprilia or satellite Ducati, there would be less risk of crashing and an immediate chance to win more races.

But leaving behind the team that gave him his very first chance in the championship is tough. It’s a decision that he has delayed for that very reason, but now, the time may have come.