Fabio Quartararo battles arm pump to finish eighth

Fabio Quartararo finished eighth at Assen on Sunday, his best MotoGP finish since Catalunya. He battled arm pump on his way to the top ten.

What happened?

The Monster Yamaha rider described the race as “long, physical, not really enjoyable”. Quartararo suffered from arm pump, which he estimated cost him several seconds.

Why it matters for Fabio Quartararo

Quartararo has already undergone several operations for arm pump. He put the recurrence down to the combination of Assen's fast, flowing layout and Yamaha's “super heavy” V4.

The 2021 world champion said: “Three times,” when asked how many arm pump operations he has undergone. He struggled with the bike, which had “no grip and that is super heavy”.

What comes next?

Team-mate Alex Rins finished just behind Quartararo for a double Yamaha top ten. Quartararo said: “I think we maximised our performance with the result we did today”. He was not feeling great with the bike, especially in the race.

KTM’s Pedro Acosta retired due to similar carpal tunnel issues in his right wrist and will undergo surgery. Quartararo's arm pain did not change the outcome, but it was a significant challenge. He kept the best position he could, given the circumstances. Marc finished seventh, 10 seconds ahead of Quartararo. Maybe he could have been two or three seconds faster, but he was not going to be seventh, Quartararo said. The result was a positive one, despite the difficulties, on 18 June, at the Assen MotoGP.