Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team travelled straight from Mugello to Barcelona for Round 9 of the 2022 MotoGP World Championship. It‘s a Grand Prix that the entire crew is looking forward to because the event also shares the title sponsor, Monster Energy, with Yamaha‘s Factory team.
Quartararo arrives at the Catalunya track feeling euphoric from concluding a challenging race weekend with a second place on the podium and an extended championship lead. He held many rivals at bay in the Mugello arena, which he didn‘t expect would be one of his stronger tracks this year. This gives him high hopes for Montmeló the coming weekend, a circuit where he and his Yamaha excel.
The Frenchman has had his fair share of success at the Catalan GP. He secured a win there in 2018 in the Moto2 class, followed this up with a second place in the premier class in 2019, and added a MotoGP win in 2020. He aims to pay the podium another visit this weekend.
Morbidelli made a step in terms of performance at the Italian GP weekend and is eager to find out if he can confirm these positive feelings in Barcelona. He plans to keep working on finding a solid base set-up and intends to collect valuable points for the championship this weekend. He currently holds 19th place in the standings, with 19 points in total.
The Italian hasn‘t scored a top-3 finish at Catalunya yet in the MotoGP class but came close in 2020 when he finished fourth. However, the rider‘s main priority for this weekend is to find a good setting with the bike, ride a strong race, and build confidence.
Work to create the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya began in 1989. Two years later the track was opened, and it soon became a crowd favourite after hosting its first MotoGP race in 1992. With an exciting 4.6km lay-out consisting of 14 corners (six left, eight right), the Catalan round is known to produce thrilling races.
Those who wish to get to know the circuit better can check out this week‘s MotoGP eSport video.
