Top 10 Finish for Team ENEOS at 2023 French MotoGP

The 2023 Grand Prix de France took no prisoners at Le Mans but Team ENEOS thrived in this MotoGP race as Fabio Quartararo and Franco Morbidelli finished seventh and tenth place respectively on behalf of Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP.

Starting from P13, El Diablo initially dropped a few positions in the first sector, but quickly moved back up the order again, taking 11th by the end of the second lap. He struggled to maintain his ground with a tight mid-pack, dropping two places until later in the race when six riders crashed out ahead, allowing him to push through. Arm pump prevented Quartararo from keeping Brad Binder behind him, but the local hero crossed the finish line seventh, 15.023sec from first.

“Had it not been for the arm pump, I could’ve been much faster,” Quartararo explained. “I wanted better results and pace, I could’ve easily been 0.5sec faster without my physical issue.”

Morbidelli was hoping for another strong start like the Sprint but wasn’t able to cut through the pack in the opening lap, settling into 18th. However, when three separate incidents occurred during the chaotic laps 3-5 that took out five riders, he moved up to 13th. Tailing Takaaki Nakagami for 15 laps, Morbidelli was unable to make a move, but when Alex Rins crashed out on lap 15, he was able to finish tenth, 17.828sec behind first.

“This was a tough race,” said Morbidelli. “Didn’t have a good start, then my tire pressure and temperature went sky-high, preventing me from attacking. We need to keep working because we aren’t performing at the level where we need to be.”

Following the French GP, Quartararo is seventh in the overall standings with 49 points while Morbidelli is 13th with 40 points. Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP are sixth in the team championship with 89 points, and Yamaha are fifth in the manufacturer championship with 58 points.

NEXT RACE

Round 6 of the 2023 MotoGP season is the Gran Premio d’Italia, taking place at Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello from June 8-11, 2023.