Paris (AFP)

Neither quite the same nor quite another: candidate for the coronation in MotoGP since last year, Fabio Quartararo started the season with as much success as the previous one but above all with a better state of mind.

His first two wins at Jerez in the opening of 2020 had propelled him to the top of the championship.

The result was not up to the task: after a disappointing end to the campaign on a capricious motorcycle, the Frenchman, who has just celebrated his 22 years, only ranked 8th in the championship, ultimately worse than his debut in 2019 (5th).

This weekend, it's another Yamaha, which has "improved a lot" and won the first three Grands Prix of 2021, but above all another Quartararo, "mentally stronger", which arrives in Spain.

"The difference is total," said the young man, leading the drivers' standings thanks to two successes in three races.

“When I won in Jerez and took the lead in the championship, it was weird for me: I had never been in this position. Now I don't think about the title but I take the races one after the 'other."

It's also easier with a more versatile bike: last year, the Portuguese GP was very complicated for him, with only 14th place, it was quite the opposite when he won ten days ago.

- "Better on this new chassis" -

"It's no secret that last year we had problems with the engine and electronics, he recalled. We had to get rid of a lot of things, some of which were working well."

The game was apparently worth the candle.

"I feel better on this new chassis, assures the N.20. One thing that allows me to go fast is to have good feelings at the front. In Qatar 2 (his first success in 2021, editor's note), these sensations were great, also in Portugal. (...) However, we haven't changed much on the bike, like in 2019. So I'm pretty sure it will perform well on all tracks. "

However, estimates the Yamaha rider, his success in Portimao was "70% in the head".

Until then, "when the bike was not going terribly well, my thoughts were very negative. I completely changed: thinking positively is great," says "El Diablo", who brought in a psychologist this winter to thwart a long-standing weakness.

"The only fault I can find in him is when he did not have the bike he wanted, he got angry a lot, maybe too much", confided Juan Borja, who supervised him in his youth in Spain, to AFP at the beginning of the year.

"We worked very well during the pre-season," continues Quartararo.

"All the exercises that my psychologist gave me are good and keep me calm."

- "More confidence" -

This change is reflected in his races.

In pole position in Portugal, he found himself 6th at the end of the first lap.

Never mind, the pilot came back to win.

During race 1 in Qatar, struggling with his rear tire, he started a "management operation" to finish 5th.

In Qatar 2, "when I was 9th, I said to myself: + we are going to try to do our best, + then + but no, we will try to win +", he said.

And he did!

"I have the impression that this victory gives me more confidence than those of last year because I came from far away", he said then.

The only downside is his team-mate Maverick Vinales, who nevertheless won the first GP of the season, had an event to forget in Portugal, 11th after a catastrophic start.

And it would have been worse without a series of falls in front of him ...

Lacking grip all weekend, the Spaniard (at Yamaha since 2017) is worried.

"It is time to see what happened and to improve because, otherwise, we will have the same problem as every year: we start by winning everything and then we slow down little by little", emphasizes -he.

If this were to be the case, the mind would be more important than ever for Fabio, who will not forget that, in 2020, the champion Joan Mir (Suzuki) was crowned thanks to his consistency, with only one victory against three for the Frenchman. .

© 2021 AFP