Marco Bezzecchi
Alex Rins’ frustrations with the 2026 Yamaha M1 boiled over behind the scenes at the Buriram MotoGP test.
Even with the major changes at Yamaha for the 2026 MotoGP season, the riders within their teams were visibly frustrated with the new M1.
After struggling in the 2025 season, Yamaha introduced a V4 engine for 2026, which would match the rest of the manufacturers on the grid.
However, the Japanese manufacturer has had issues with their latest machine, which has not shown any improvement from the inline-four machine they used in 2025.
Should Yamaha pay less attention to Fabio Quartararo’s feedback in 2026?
Alex Rins had to release his frustrations behind the scenes
After Fabio Quartararo had publicly displayed his frustrations with the new 2026 Yamaha M1, Alex Rins revealed how he dealt with his feelings.
On the Paddock Pass Podcast, Neil Morrison discussed the body language of the Yamaha riders during the Buriram MotoGP test, and later commented on what Rins said after the test.
The Spaniard revealed that he locked himself in his rider cabin and screamed after each run on his Yamaha M1.
Morrison said, “More than the performance, it was the body language of Fabio Quartararo, Alex Rins, and Toprak Razgatlioglu throughout the weekend that indicated it was a really, really tough situation.
“My favourite quote from the weekend was when Alex Rins said he was getting rid of all of his anger and frustration by locking himself in the rider cabins they have at the back of the circuit after each run and locking the door and screaming. Which was his way of getting all that angst out.
“Which is not really a sign of an entirely happy camp.”
Will Fabio Quartararo see out the 2026 season with Yamaha?
Alex Rins hopes Yamaha will listen to him over Fabio Quartararo’s
Reports suggest Quartararo will leave Yamaha at the end of 2026 and join Honda on a two-year deal for 2027 and 2028.
With these reports gaining traction as the 2026 pre-season came to an end, Rins revealed how he hopes Yamaha will now begin to listen to his views more.
The Spaniard stated that Yamaha are ‘very focused on Fabio’ and that the 2025 Yamaha M1 was ‘very much tailored to his preferences’.
Rins is hoping to have more input into the 2027 Yamaha M1 now that it appears clear that Quartararo is switching to Honda.
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