Fabio Quartararo questioned about injured Alex Rins’ availability for test

Yamaha are the only MotoGP manufacturer with just two riders on this year’s, and next year’s, grids, a major disadvantage in development for a team who are already struggling.

Rins, the LCR Honda rider who has signed a contract to replace Fabio Morbidelli at Yamaha in 2024, is back on the sidelines and must undergo another surgery on a broken leg after an aborted comeback attempt.

Quartararo was asked, at the Thailand MotoGP, if a problem would arise if Rins could not ride at the Valencia test, and he replied: “First of all, the health is more important than the bike.

“I wish he can be back at 100% with his leg.

“Knowing Alex, I don’t know how bad the other surgery is. But to come back too early is never good.

“We’ve seen Marc, we’ve seen him.

“To not be at the Valencia test, for him and for us, it won’t be a massive change.

“The most important [thing] is for him to be at 100%.”

2021 champion Quartararo was limited to a 14th-place finish last weekend in Australia, before frustratingly claiming it would take Yamaha “15 winters” to catch up to the leading manufacturers.

He said about the result he expects in Buriram: “Normally, it’s one good, then one bad. So now should be a top result!

“We have to stay positive. For me, the main goal is to be in Q2 on Friday.

“This would be a big step for us.

“Every time we’ve been in the first three rows, we’ve made a great race. So this is my No 1 goal.”

He refused to be drawn on predicting a 2023 MotoGP champion, with Francesco Bagnaia entering the weekend 27 points ahead of Jorge Martin.

“That’s not my case,” Quartararo said. “It’s going to be funny. That’s all I can say.

“I will enjoy [watching], it’s always good to see both of them. They’re doing a really good job.

“Hopefully it is until Valencia.”