Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Show Fighting Spirit in British GP Sprint
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP's Fabio Quartararo and Álex Rins started today's Grand Prix of Great Britain Sprint from P13 and P17 respectively and finished the hard-fought 10-lap contest in P14 and P16.
GRAND PRIX OF GREAT BRITAIN
SPRINT
Silverstone (United Kingdom), 8th August 2026
14th
F. Quartararo +15.213 / 10 LAPS
16th
Á. Rins +20.194 / 10 LAPS
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP's Fabio Quartararo and Álex Rins spent the Grand Prix of Great Britain Sprint battling in the busy midpack. Having qualified in P13 and P17 respectively, the teammates ultimately wrapped up the 10-lap dash in P14 and P16.
Quartararo had a good start and held firm in the mid-pack to complete the first lap in P11. A crash by Raul Fernandez on lap 4 put the Frenchman in P10 before he faced pressure from Diogo Moreira and later also Luca Marini. The number-20 gave it some welly, retaliating at every opportunity, but ultimately had to let them pass and then dropped down the order. He took the chequered flag in P14, 15.213s from first.
Rins commenced the Sprint from P17 and moved up to 15th place after an eventful opening lap. On the next, he overtook Francesco Bagnaia and a lap later Marini. When another rival crashed on lap 4, the Spaniard had gradually improved his live-timing ranking to P12. However, on lap 6 Marini came back past and on lap 8 three more rivals followed. He ended the Sprint in P16, 20.194s from first.
After today's Sprint, Quartararo remains in 14th place in the championship standings with 55 points, while Rins stays in 19th with 21 points. Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP are in 10th position in the team classification with 76 points, and Yamaha is 5th in the constructor rankings with 69 points.
Tomorrow, the teammates will be back in action for Warm Up, held from 09:40-09:50 (GMT+1), and the 20-lap Race, which starts at 13:00.
MASSIMO MEREGALLI Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team Director
"It's been a tough weekend for us so far. Starting from P13 and P17 put both riders in the midst of the midfield battle. They gained positions in the opening laps, but it was difficult to maintain that pace to the end due to Silverstone's long straight, though both riders fought hard. The data from today's Sprint will be valuable for tomorrow. We don't have much information from Silverstone in these hot conditions, and tyre degradation is a key factor. We'll analyse today's findings, make the most of Warm Up, and focus on putting together the strongest race possible."
FABIO QUARTARARO Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider
"Qualifying and the Sprint were not super good. I still don't have the feeling that I had last year. The tyre consumption was a bit high, but that's also because I did push all the race. I had Moreira and Marini overtake me on the straight, and I tried to stay in front. The tyre degradation and especially tyre overheating is quite severe here, and I think maybe the medium rear would have been a bit better. But I didn't want to start on a harder tyre with less grip because it would have made it harder to fight for points. I gave it my maximum, but it was not enough."
ÁLEX RINS Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider
"We thought about using the medium tyre. After lunch I was talking with Fabio [Quartararo] about which tyre we were going to use. I said: 'The medium, for sure'. But then we heard that everyone was going with the soft rear. So, I said: 'Okay, going with the soft makes it equal for everybody'. But, for sure, the medium rear tyre would have had a bit more. At least with the soft tyre I did enjoy the first laps. I did some overtakes on Marini and Miller, but then the last few laps were quite tough to manage."
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team Director