Horror fall decides 2021 MotoGP world title

France’s Fabio Quartararo has been crowned the 2021 MotoGP world champion after his closest rival crashed out at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

Italy’s Francesco Bagnaia came into the race needing to outscore Quartararo by three points and looked set to do so before a crash with five laps to go saw his title hopes go up in smoke.

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Bagnaia’s crash allowed Spain’s Marc Marquez to take out the race, with Quartararo’s fourth-placed finish enough to secure the title with two races still remaining.

The Italian was not the only rider to crash out, with Australia’s Jack Miller’s race coming to an end after just three laps after his own crash, leaving him in fifth place in the 2021 standings.

“I think the consistency that we had this year; I’m touching wood, but we finished all the races that we make, scoring every time points, points, points,” Quartararo said after claiming the title.

“I think even in Jerez I sored three points with the arm pump problem. I think the consistency of 2021 is the same as 2019, but we are faster. This I think is the key to win the championship this year.”

Despite winning the title on a Yamaha, the newly-crowned world champion said he was “struggling in many areas” on the bike.

“For me it is working pretty well. We are world champions, so I think that we can be really happy. We need to work,” he said.

“To be honest I’m feeling really good with the bike, but I’m still struggling in many areas and with overtake. It depends on the track.

“This track was so difficult and everybody knows where we need to improve. It’s horsepower, with more horsepower we can have the best bike of the paddock, but I think Yamaha know where they need to work. Right now I can’t say if it’s the best.”

The world title is the 22-year-old Frenchman’s first and caps off a continued rise since making his MotoGP debut in 2019.

After finishing fifth in his first season, Quartararo fell back to eighth in 2020 before his stunning rise this season.

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