Quartararo: Doha MotoGP win “most special” of my career

Quartararo was left in ninth at the end of the opening lap having been swamped from fifth on the grid.

But the Yamaha rider carved his way through the pack and by lap 19 had taken over from long-time leader Jorge Martin on the Pramac Ducati, from which point Quartararo sped off to the fourth win of his MotoGP career by 1.4 seconds.

Admitting he felt like “a rookie” in the opening Qatar race a week ago, Quartararo said of his Doha win: “I have not won many races, so for sure this one is the most special one coming from ninth.

“I think in the middle of the race I was in more or less that position and I was feeling so good in overtaking spots like Turn 10, Turn 15 and I felt like I could win the race at that moment.

“It makes a total difference from last week because last week I ride a little bit like an amateur, like a rookie because I was not playing with mapping, with tyres and I make reverse in the second race.

“It feels good to win and also to have two French guys in 1-2, I think it’s quite a long time since we’ve seen it.

“So, I’m so happy for this win.”

Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha Factory Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Quartararo won the opening two races of the 2020 campaign and looked set to be the main player in the championship, before inconsistent form for the rest of the year meant he only reached the podium once more when he won in Barcelona.

Yamaha has had a similarly strong start to 2021 with Maverick Vinales winning the Qatar GP and Quartararo the Doha event on the improved M1 package.

But Quartararo is reluctant to say whether the form Yamaha has shown at the start of 2021 is more genuine than at this stage last year.

“Step by step,” he said when asked by Motorsport.com if he felt this form was promising than at the start of 2020.

“Last year I won the two first races in Jerez, the second one with eight seconds of advantage.

“So, step by step. We raced twice in the same track, so I feel confident with the bike and I feel like we can be fast.

“But I don’t want to tell you yes and then it’s no, so at the moment is the moment I believe in our bike but it’s going to work all year.

“At the moment, we have a really good bike.”