The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team are making their way to Austin, Texas in the United States of America for a single fly-away race before tackling the three GPs of the final European leg. After the positive results of the MotoGP test at the Misano Circuit last week, both Fabio Quartararo and Franco Morbidelli are fully motivated to strive for top results.
Quartararo arrives at the Circuit of The Americas (COTA) holding the lead in the championship with a 48-point advantage and four races to go, including this weekend‘s encounter. El Diablo is a racer through and through and has made up his mind to keep his ’all or nothing‘ winner‘s mentality going for the upcoming head-to-head in Austin, Texas.
In his very first year of visiting COTA, in 2015, the Frenchman immediately scored second place in the Moto3 class, his only podium at this track so far. He has ridden a MotoGP bike in Austin just once, in April 2019, taking seventh. With the experience he has gained since then on the M1, he is confident that he can fight for top positions this time round.
Morbidelli counts himself lucky to have escaped injury after some falls in the Misano Test last week. The following days off have given him time to get recharged and he is looking forward to trying the Factory YZR-M1 at another track and continuing the positive manner in which he finished the test.
The Italian is currently 17th in the championship with 40 points, but rather than overall rankings, getting the feeling back after his rehabilitation period is his main goal for this weekend. Always up for a challenge, Morbidelli is a fan of the tricky Austin track and is anticipating making laps there. Some of his best results include his win in 2017 in the Moto2 class and the fifth place he scored with Yamaha in the premier class in 2019.
Constructed in 2013, the Circuit of The Americas (COTA) is one of the newest on the calendar, having been added to the Grand Prix schedule that same year. Its 5513m length and mixture of fast straights and tight hairpins make the track both challenging and exciting to master for teams and riders. They need to find exactly the right balance for the bike‘s set-up to suit the 11 left and 9 right turns in combination with the 1,200m straight in order snatch a place on the podium. The especially sharp Turn 1 will be a place where the fans can expect a lot of overtaking action, both at the start and during the race.
Those who wish to be reminded of COTA‘s lay-out can refresh their memory by watching this eSport video.
