MotoGP

MotoGP rookie sanctioned for ‘physical contact with marshal’

by Valentin Khorounzhiy
2 min read

VR46 Ducati MotoGP rider Marco Bezzecchi has been fined for “physical contact with a marshal” during Valencia Saturday morning practice.

Fear of bike exploding prompted Bezzecchi’s anger at marshal
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Bezzecchi, this year’s top rookie, crashed his 2021 Ducati on his first outlap in FP3, bringing out an early red flag as the Desmosedici shredded itself bouncing through the gravel and its remains caught fire.

But though Bezzecchi himself was clearly winded by the crash and needed some time to get up on his feet in the gravel trap, he had regained enough composure to be displeased by how long it took the marshal to get the flames extinguished.

In the process of showing his displeasure, Bezzecchi appeared to grab and shove the track worker in the direction of the wreck as the latter sought to engage the fire extinguisher.

It did not go unnoticed by MotoGP stewards, who ruled Bezzecchi conducted himself in a fashion “detrimental to the interest of the sport” in “making physical contact with a marshal in an aggressive and unprofessional manner”.

A video subsequently posted on Twitter by a third party suggested Bezzecchi – who crashed again later in the session – subsequently sought out the marshal to apologise.

Bezzecchi’s fine of €1,000 was the same amount as levied against Moto3 riders Kaito Toba and Jaume Masia, who came to blows during practice – in more ways then one.

The pair went down after a collision and then had a lively disagreement walking away from the site of the accident, with Toba lightly slapping Masia twice on the helmet and Masia retaliating with a more forceful slap of his own.

Jaume Masia Kaito Toba Moto3 Valencia

But unlike Bezzecchi, the Moto3 pairing did not get away without a sporting penalty, with both Toba and Masia set to start Sunday’s Moto3 finale from the pitlane and both required to serve long-lap penalties.

There was also a sporting penalty assessed in MotoGP – to returning LCR Honda rider Takaaki Nakagami, who impeded Pramac Ducati’s Jorge Martin during third practice and has incurred a three-place grid sanction.

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