Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP |News details:Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Take 11th and 12th in Australian GP Sprint

Pictures for editorial use only
Copyright 2024 Yamaha Motor Racing Srl

The Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix Sprint was only 13-laps long but riddled with crashes. Although Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP's Fabio Quartararo and Álex Rins struggled to be competitive on the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, they still finished in 11th and 12th place respectively.

Phillip Island (Australia), 19th October 2024

Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team's Fabio Quartararo and Álex Rins tackled tricky conditions during the 13-lap Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix Sprint. Despite struggling with low grip at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, the teammates staunchly carried on to cross the finish line in 11th and 12th position respectively.

Quartararo had a decent start from P19 and after some tussles on the opening laps was riding in 18th place behind his teammate. The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP riders swapped positions on lap 5, allowing the Frenchman to try to chase Luca Marini whilst fending off a charging Augusto Fernandez. Meanwhile, Johann Zarco, Alex Marquez, and Jack Miller retired after crashes, moving El Diablo up to 14th. With 3 laps to go, Augusto Fernandez overtook the number 20, but as also Pedro Acosta, Brad Binder, Marco Bezzecchi, and Maverick Viñales crashed out in the final stages, Quartararo crossed the finish line in 11th place, 21.379s from the front.

Rins had qualified in P9 but struggled to defend his position after the start. Unable to get heat into the rear tyre, he dropped down the order. He found himself riding behind his teammate at the end of lap 5. With Zarco and Alex Marquez out of the race, he was in 16th place. It seemed short-lived as Augusto Fernandez passed him, but Jack Miller's crash on lap 8 saw the Yamaha man's position reinstated. The number-42 rider stayed in pursuit of his teammate over the second half of the Sprint. With four more rivals failing to reach the chequered flag, Rins crossed the finish line in 12th place, 21.483s from first.

Today's results see Quartararo hold 13th place in the overall standings with 86 points. Rins is now in 20th position with 20 points. Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP keep their 9th place in the team championship with 106 points, and Yamaha hold on to 4th position in the constructor's championship with 97 points.

The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP duo will be back on track tomorrow for Warm Up from 09:40-09:50 local track time (GMT +11). The 27-lap Race will start at 14:00.

Massimo Meregalli

Team Director

Let's start with the positives: Álex was able to obtain a place on the third row. However, the Sprint didn't go as we wanted nor how we thought it would play out. Fabio and Álex both struggled in today's Sprint race, and they both gave the same feedback afterwards. The conditions this weekend meant we only had a limited amount of track time, and having only two bikes on the track then becomes a big disadvantage. So, we need to look at today's data, and we'll use all the remaining time to work on a solution to improve the general behaviour of the bike, which should help our riders in tomorrow's Race.

Fabio Quartararo

Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider

It was a tough day, especially in qualifying but also in the Sprint race. My start was pretty good, but Johann and Augusto were closing the line, so I couldn't really overtake. Then the grip was very low for us and we struggled a lot, but we're working on it and are trying to find something positive. So, tomorrow we will try our best again.

Álex Rins

Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider

In qualifying we did a good job, and yesterday in the Practice we did a nice lap time to get into Q2. In the wet conditions this morning, it was not that bad either. In qualifying I was feeling quite happy because we did a good lap time considering the conditions. So, it all looked nice, but then problems occurred in the Sprint. My reaction time was good, but then I had a wheelie and spent 5-6 laps to warm the rear tyre. It was difficult to manage. We didn't expect the problems we faced in the Sprint, so we expect that tomorrow's Race will be tough, but we're going to try our best.