Fabio Quartararo: Yamaha still focusing on 2024 bike, 'getting closer'

Yamaha's access to technical concessions means that the usual distinction between the factory's current MotoGP bike and next year's model is likely to be blurred.

Instead, Fabio Quartararo explained, Yamaha's focus is on delivering a continuous stream of updates for the M1.

"With the concessions, we don't really think about next year," he said. "You can make improvements every month if you have the parts because we have the freedom to change the spec of our engine [now]. 

"So this made the focus just for the short-term future, and not really about ‘25."

The next significant upgrade is tipped to be the introduction of the second revised engine specification that impressed Quartararo and team-mate Alex Rins during a private Valencia test.

The first new spec engine was delivered for Assen, but the second is said to provide bigger benefits.

"We tried two engines, one we have since Assen…. And one is coming in the future. The other one is working better, so this is going to be really positive," Quartararo said.

The MotoGP engine list showed that Quartararo opened a new engine at Assen, then got another new engine at Sachsenring, racing with the same version as in The Netherlands.

The new engine appears to improve agility and turning but not, it seems, grip and the Frenchman felt that extracting the maximum performance on new tyres held him back in Germany.

"The race was much better than we expected, [but] we missed a lot in the beginning with new tyres," he said.

20 seconds faster over the race distance than a year ago but still 17 seconds from Ducati winner Francesco Bagnaia, Quartararo feels progress is at least being made in catching the other European brands.

"Since Max [Bartolini] arrived, the team has changed quite a lot," Quartararo explained. "We test many things. 

"We started the season super far compared to the European manufacturers but I feel we are getting a bit closer. 

"Not really to Ducati, but to Aprilia and KTM."

Quartararo finished the German MotoGP in eleventh place and 7 seconds behind the top Aprilia of Miguel Oliveira, but was just 2.5s adrift of the leading KTM (Pedro Acosta).

Honda also has access to MotoGP's full range of concessions. Its top rider in Germany was Takaaki Nakagami, who finished in 14th place and 8 seconds behind Quartararo.