Monster Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo secured his 13th front row start of the 2021 season at Misano on Saturday as he prepared to line up third for the San MarinoGP.

Quartararo was pushing hard in the closing stages of the afternoon’s Q2 as he looked to bridge the gap to last weekend’s winner Pecco Bagnaia. Maybe a little too much, as he went down at the first corner on his final lap after losing provisional pole to the Ducati pair. With the top three replicating last weekend’s Aragon assault, the third position brings a familiar feeling for the Frenchman at the Riviera di Rimini track.

“The fourth qualifying I made on this track in MotoGP and always in the third position,” Quartararo said of his Misano performance. “I think that we have made a great job. Last lap I try a little bit too much in the first corner. We check the data and I brake way too late, but this is what I wanted to do and was great also to feel that limit on the front.

“Happy about the pace I had in FP4. The second run, we make a small change on the bike and I was able to improve with used tyres so looking forward to try this setup with the new tyre.

“We have many things to try and in any case, if it's wet, I will give my 100% because in the position that we are in a wet [in FP2 he finished 18th], I think that right now we have zero points. I will give my 100% if it's wet, I will give my 100% if it's dry. Of course I hope for dry, but I have confidence in all situations.

“From my side is totally different situation as Aragon,” he said of the mirroring qualifying performance of both himself and the two Ducati’s, and the impending battle ahead. “Aragon my pace was different, I was struggling much more, and today I was feeling really good and really comfortable on the bike.

“So it's not a matter of me and Pecco, I think it's a matter of myself to try to do my best and then we see. Is not in my head like is only Pecco because I'm surrounded by many riders and will depend on the first laps. Here the race is really long and let's see, but I think that our pace is quite good with used tyres so I'm confident and I think that we can achieve a great result.

“I will push, I will push. I mean is five races to go, is not only one or two. So I will push hard. But, of course, if I see that I'm too much on the limit I will not push that much to risk a crash. I think that Aragon I push the maximum until the end, and even if it was one point more against Martin I did my best. Of course tomorrow I think that we have much more possibility to be in front and I will give my 100%.

“In this race a little bit,” he said of his Yamaha loneliness. “I am exactly in the middle of four Ducatis, so of course it's not the best. Would be great to have some blue bikes in front but yes I hope that soon Franco will recover well, and be up there because we are struggling, much more in qualifying than usual. I tried to give some great information to Yamaha for what I see today, was quite interesting and is not super easy.”