INTERVIEW I MO T OGP WORLD C HAMPION FABIO QUAR TARARO
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W
hen assessing the ups
and downs of Fabio
Quartararo's career,
perhaps 2021 shouldn't have
come as a surprise. This wasn't
the first time the Frenchman
had undergone something of a
transformation. From the most
hyped rookie in Moto3 history,
he then drifted into years of wil-
derness, in danger of becoming
an example of placing too much
expectation on a young talent
too soon.
From 2018 to '19 he went
through a similar metamorpho-
sis. From a one-time winner and
very occasional threat in Moto2,
Quartararo was reborn as Marc
Marquez's chief rival in MotoGP,
amassing seven podiums for a
satellite team, formed only at the
beginning of that year, across
one of the more impressive
rookie seasons in memory.
And so, 2021 has seen further
wholesale changes to the rider
once labelled "The Next Mar-
quez" when he was just 15 years
of age. An occasionally petulant
and often erratic performer who
imploded when leading last
year's championship with five
races to play, Quartararo has
FABIO QUARTARARO HAS REINVENTED HIMSELF ONCE AGAIN, THIS TIME AS THE
THINKING RIDER. IT'S SERVED HIM WELL, WINNING HIM THE MOTOGP WORLD
CHAMPIONSHIP IN JUST HIS THIRD ATTEMPT. HE TOLD CYCLE NEWS HOW HE DID IT
BY NEIL MORRISON • PHOTOGRAPHY BY GOLD & GOOSE
