Quartararo: ‘I will prepare myself like a crazy man, pain in my finger’
Quartararo, who was beaten in a race by Francesco Bagnaia for the eighth time in nine races at Sepang on Sunday, has seen a 91 point advantage turn into a 23 point deficit to the Ducati rider in the MotoGP standings.
The Yamaha rider produced one of his better performances since before the summer break, and had he finished any lower than third after starting 12th, then the world title would have switched hands after Bagnaia took victory.
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Crucial to his podium finish was the fact Quartararo gained seven places by the end of turn one, as opposed to the pre-race fear that was of him being stuck further back in the pack and risking his front tyre pressures overheating.
While Valencia should suit the Yamaha better than recent rounds, Bagnaia and Ducati took victory at the Ricardo Tormo circuit in 2021 and will be favourites to do so again.
For Quartararo to be crowned back-to-back MotoGP champion he will need to win, no other result can help him achieve that goal, while Bagnaia would have to finish 14th or lower.
"I will prepare myself like a crazy man because I know the only solution for me to fight there will be to win," said Quartararo.
"So, it doesn’t matter, but I want to enjoy the Valencia race because I know it’s the last one of the season, and then we’ll see how we do. But I’m feeling like we have to enjoy the Valencia race."
Quartararo ‘in pain’ after ‘stupid crash’ led to broken finger
Although his performance suggested he wasn’t in too much discomfort, Quartararo’s pre-race preparation was made tougher after suffering a broken finger in FP4.
The Frenchman suffered a fairly innocuous-looking crash at turn eight before remounting his M1, however, it quickly became apparent the Quartararo was struggling.
Fears that he suffered a worse injury than initially thought, Quartararo didn’t look right in qualifying as he was seen putting ice on his middle finger (left hand) at every opportunity.
Speaking after the race about his injury, Quartararo said: "It was not a big crash, but a stupid crash. It was a normal crash but I just broke my finger and, of course, it was really painful but luckily Angel (Charte) took care of me yesterday afternoon so I want to say thanks to him.
"Of course, adrenaline is a great painkiller and also fighting for that kind of position.
"I think my finger was something else but as soon as I stopped, right now I feel pain in my finger. It doesn’t matter because we gave everything and that’s what we wanted today."
