Yamaha has halted all on-track activity during the second day of MotoGP’s official preseason test at Sepang while it investigates a technical issue with its new engine. The Japanese manufacturer made the decision after one of its bikes unexpectedly stopped during running on Tuesday afternoon.
The problem occurred on the M1 ridden by Yamaha factory rider Fabio Quartararo. Earlier in the day, he had crashed at Turn 5 of the Malaysian circuit and suffered a fractured middle finger on his right hand. Despite the injury, he returned to the track later that afternoon, but his bike came to an unexpected stop at Turn 2. The issue was linked to the V4 engine that Yamaha has been developing for its MotoGP programme.
Source: Speedcafe
Quartararo then elected to end his test early and return to Spain for further medical assessment in Barcelona. Doctors there will determine the best path for his recovery ahead of the next scheduled test in Buriram in just over two weeks.
Yamaha’s engineers examined the stopped bike on Tuesday evening but could not immediately pinpoint the cause of the problem. With safety in mind, the manufacturer chose to suspend its testing until it can identify what went wrong. As a result, no Yamaha riders took part in on-track activity on Wednesday morning, as technical staff from the factory in Japan worked with the team at the circuit to uncover the issue.
Team manager Massimo Meregalli said the suspension of running is a precaution while the root of the issue is established. He stressed that the stoppage is not connected to Quartararo’s crash itself and indicated that testing would resume once the problem is understood and resolved.
