Top 16 Finish for Team ENEOS at 2024 MotoGP Japan

The Grand Prix of Japan at Mobility Resort Motegi proved unpredictable for Team ENEOS. Rain fell on the grid before the Race, adding tension as riders headed to line up. The threat of dark clouds was nothing to fear as it remained dry, however, Fabio Quartararo and Álex Rins were unable to use this to their advantage, riding to P12 and P16 finishes respectively.

El Diablo started from P12, losing a few spots in the early stages, but was able to climb to P11 on the first lap. A battle with Marco Bezzecchi and Fabio Di Giannantonio pushed Quartararo back two positions. He switched his focus to defending his position from Johann Zarco for the remainder of the Race, and when Maverick Viñales crashed out on lap 12, the Frenchman made a charge to finish strong but lost the position to Zarco when he went wide at the last second and ran out of fuel. He finished the race in P12, 32.299sec from the race winner.

“This was a tough race, I didn’t have any grip,” said Quartararo. “Our bike relies heavily on track conditions, and we also ran out of fuel, so it’s clear we need to change some things.”

Teammate Rins launched from P19, holding the position early in the Race. Though he lost a place to Takaaki Nakagami, he gradually moved up to P15 as others crashed. He didn’t find the feeling he was searching for and couldn’t push as hard as he wanted, then was overtaken by Luca Marini on lap 16. Rins finished the race in P16, 40.839sec from first.

“The first part of the Race wasn’t bad, but overall very difficult,” Rins explained. “We hoped our Austria setup would improve braking and rear tire contact, and I certainly felt the bike better. But when the tire dropped, it was hard to control wheelspin.”

Following the Japanese GP, Quartararo remains 13th in the overall standings with 86 points; Rins is still joint-19th with 20 points. Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP retains ninth in the team championship with 106 points, and Yamaha is fourth in the manufacturer championship with 97 points.

NEXT RACE

Team ENEOS heads to Phillip Island for the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix from October 18-20.