Quartararo: ‘I made mistakes’, Morbidelli ‘ready to attack, make another step’
Despite being on an inferior bike compared to the Ducatis last season, Quartararo produced several brilliant performances to take the title fight down to the wire in Valencia.
However, finishing ahead of Francesco Bagnaia at the season-finale was not enough for the Yamaha rider to become a back-to-back MotoGP champion.
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Speaking at the official Yamaha team launch in Jakarta, Quartararo admitted he needs to be at his very best, both physically and mentally if he’s to challenge once again.
"What we need from my side is that I'm at a top level both physically and mentally, be at the top level on the bike and not make any mistakes," said the Frenchman. "As for the team, their 2022 was pretty good, I have to say.
"Of course, I made mistakes, the team made mistakes and Yamaha made mistakes, but we have learned from that. This will be my third year with the Factory Yamaha team, and I want to fight for the title again with them."
Morbidelli ‘ready to attack’ and become a MotoGP challenger again
Also on hand to showcase Yamaha’s new M1 ahead of the new season was 2020 runner-up Franco Morbidelli.
The Italian suffered his worst season in the premier class last year, but after taking a much-needed break to detach from the sport, the Italian is now ready for the ‘rollercoaster’ to begin.
"[Winter] was pretty good," said Morbidelli in a Yamaha Q&A. "I replenished my energy. I had some rest, and then I started moving pretty early in the winter. I did some on track motorbikes, karting, and some motocross too.
"I remained active on the bike and trained. I didn’t go on holiday anywhere far. I wanted to spend some time at home and really appreciate and enjoy it before the whole rollercoaster starts again at the end of January.
"It’s important to rest, and it’s important to detach a bit from all the technical thinking and the thinking about motorcycles.
"We reset and restart, and with a refreshed mind and refreshed energies I’m ready to attack, consolidate what I saw at the last part of the 2022 season, and make another step. There’s a lot I’m looking forward to at the start of this new season."
