Quartararo Left Empty-Handed: 16-Second Penalty
The French Yamaha rider finished 12th at Silverstone, but a technical inspection found an irregularity with the tire pressure monitoring system, dropping him to last among classified finishers.
The French Yamaha rider finished 12th at Silverstone, but a technical inspection found an irregularity with the tire pressure monitoring system, dropping him to last among classified finishers.
Fabio Quartararo suffered a major disappointment at the British Grand Prix. The Yamaha rider managed to finish the chaotic race at Silverstone in 12th place, which would have earned him four points and the title of best-placed rider for his team, but the celebration was short-lived.
After crossing the finish line, a cold shower came in the form of a stewards' decision. A technical inspection carried out after the race revealed a problem with the tire pressure monitoring system on his Yamaha. According to reports from foreign media, the system failed to properly record and transmit valid data on the front tire pressure during the race.
Due to this technical infringement, the stewards handed Quartararo a 16-second time penalty. That penalty dropped him from a solid 12th place all the way down to 16th, i.e., to the very bottom of the standings among the riders classified at the end of the race. Thus, he was left without a single point in an instant.
MotoGP confirmed that the penalty is directly linked to the tire pressure sensors, and foreign media report that the issue lies in the incorrect configuration of the monitoring system, which failed to provide valid data during the ride. Particularly painful is the fact that Quartararo had ridden a result worthy of points on track and was the best Yamaha rider at Silverstone.
This is not the first time the Frenchman has left the British circuit disappointed, but this time his final position was not determined by his riding, but by an administrative and technical oversight that cost his team dearly.