WithU RNF Yamaha team manager Wilco Zeelenberg recently spoke about the different approaches of Fabio Quartararo and Franco Morbidelli. Why is the Italian lagging so far behind?
World Champion Fabio Quartararo also leads the current MotoGP Championship again after 13 of 20 races. The Yamaha rider has a 32-point lead over Aleix Espargaró (Aprilia) and 44 points over Pecco Bagnaia, who has recently won three races in a row.
Quartararo’s teammate Franco Morbidelli, on the other hand, does not get anywhere. The Italian, MotoGP Vice World Champion 2020 on Yamaha, has only scored 26 points this year. His best result comes from Mandalika, when «Franky» finished 7th.
Wilco Zeelenberg was team manager of Quartararo and Morbidelli in the Petronas team in 2019 and 2020. In 2021, too, until he switched to the Yamaha factory team, he worked with “Morbido”. He now takes care of the needs of Darryn Binder and Andrea Dovizioso at WithU RNF Yamaha. The Dutchman explained to motorsport.com what is causing the Yamaha riders to fall behind top star Quartararo.
«Franco finished on the podium at Jerez last year. Everything went very well. Then he injured his knee. Since then he never rode at his level. He’s currently fit, but he’s still having problems, that’s a mystery to me,” said Zeelenberg. “I don’t think his riding style suits the bike.”
The team manager continues: «Fabio generates more cornering speed, but does not overheat his tyres. He drives with less inclination. He avoids the problems that the other drivers have. His brand mates ride with a slightly more old-fashioned style. You brake hard and far into the curve. Fabio is just braking, lets go of the brake and then turns into the curve. He does that in every corner and always manages to be one or two km/h faster.”
Quartararo has won three races so far this year. Zeelenberg has a clear opinion on the Frenchman’s success. «We share all the data and we see exactly what he’s doing. Thanks to his talent and size, he gets along better with the bike,” the 56-year-old is convinced. “He’s very tall and can always keep traction on his rear wheel. He does it better than others. It’s a combination of factors.”
MotoGP Riders’ World Championship after 13 of 20 Grands Prix:
1. Quartararo 200 Punkte. 2. Aleix Espargaró 168. 3. Bagnaia 156. 4. Zarco 125. 5. Miller 123. 6. Bastianini 118. 7. Brad Binder 107. 8. Rins 92. 9. Martin 87. 10. Oliveira 85. 11. Viñales 85. 12. Mir 77. 13. Marini 69. 14. Bezzecchi 68. 15. Marc Márquez 60. 16. Nakagami 45. 17. Pol Espargaró 42. 18. Alex Márquez 29. 19. Morbidelli 26. 20. Di Giannantonio 23 21. Dovizioso 11. 22. Darryn Binder 10. 23. Gardner 9. 24. Raúl Fernández 5.
Constructors’ Championship:
1. Ducati 296 Punkte. 2. Yamaha 200. 3. Aprilia 185. 4. KTM 140. 5. Suzuki 118. 6. Honda 90.
Team World Cup:
1. Ducati Lenovo Team 279 Punkte. 2. Aprilia Racing 253. 3. Monster Energy Yamaha 226. 4. Prima Pramac Racing 212. 5. Red Bull KTM Factory 192. 6. Suzuki Ecstar 169. 7. Gresini Racing 141. 8. Mooney VR46 Racing 137. 9. Repsol Honda 102. 10. LCR Honda 74. 11. WithU Yamaha RNF 21. 12. Tech3 KTM Factory 14.