Miguel Oliveira has branded fellow sophomore MotoGP rider Francesco Bagnaia “childish” after a run-in between the pair during qualifying for the French Grand Prix at Le Mans.
Oliveira appeared to get in Bagnaia’s way during the first run of laps at the sweeping La Chapelle right-hander on what was a cool-down lap for the former but very much a push lap for the latter.
The Portuguese rider was on the racing line coming down towards the corner, and though he moved wide once he began to enter Le Chapelle, Bagnaia had gotten close by then and felt he was impeded, rolling out of his lap and gesturing angrily towards Oliveira.
TV cameras did not capture the full extent of the confrontation, but Oliveira claimed in his media session that Bagnaia was continuously agitated and behaved improperly in the aftermath.
“Pecco was acting very childish,” Oliveira said. “After my third lap in Q2, I was off the racing line, or let’s say the ideal line, but not completely off the track.
“I could not see that he was coming, he started to wave his hands and for me the worst is that he crossed his bike to mine, like wanting to hit me and make me crash, also coming into the pits.
“For me it’s just a reflection of what he is, he’s a child. When you endanger another rider because of one fast lap, it isn’t normal to have this kind of attitude.
“I might make mistakes on track but I always try to respect my opponent, and not show that I want them to crash, and for me this was not acceptable from his side.”
Oliveira and Bagnaia entered the pits at different times after their first runs in Q2, but would’ve run together in the very end as the helicopter camera showed them taking their post-session practice starts side by side.
Oliveira, who had one of his KTMs develop a technical fault and crashed the other one in FP4, qualified 12th on his crashed bike, whereas Pramac Ducati rider Bagnaia will line up seventh on the grid.
Bagnaia adopted an apologetic tone when asked about the Oliveira run-in: “I have to say sorry for Miguel. When I’m in a normal situation my anger levels are low but when I find someone riding slow in front of me I am always very nervous. For sure it was enough what happened with us, because I was too angry with him.
This isn’t the first time that Miguel Oliveira has been outspoken and particularly hard-hitting towards a rival
“He was riding slowly but he was thinking that in a normal situation you can push for three laps and already this was the fourth. Maybe he wasn’t thinking about me pushing also on the fourth lap, and in any case if I meet him I will say sorry to him for my reaction but I will ask him to also watch behind him for someone arriving.”
Oliveira and Bagnaia were title rivals in Moto2 back in 2018, with the latter taking the championship by nine points.
Asked by The Race whether he’d raise Bagnaia’s actions with race control since he considered them dangerous, Oliveira said: “It’s not worth it. Whatever race direction sees or the stewards see or don’t see is very questionable.
“I’m not a guy who is going there to complain about other guys. I think attitudes speak for themselves. We will see tomorrow in the race.”
The Race says…
This isn’t the first time that Miguel Oliveira has been outspoken and particularly hard-hitting towards a rival since stepping up to the premier class only 18 months ago. The Tech3 rider caused something of a minor controversy earlier this season when he called out fellow KTM rider Pol Espargaro after the pair fell together at the Austrian Grand Prix.
Telling media that “not everyone is born with the same level of intelligence,” Oliveira caused something of a storm within the manufacturer’s ranks – but it was overshadowed only days later when the Portuguese rider managed to outsmart both Espargaro and Jack Miller to take a final-corner victory at the same circuit.
It’s testament to Oliveira’s quiet, reserved yet friendly nature that he’s been able to speak his mind without making enemies in the paddock, however, with both his personality and his speed on-track keeping him well-liked. His comments about Espargaro have also rather amusingly promoted a new nickname from his Tech3 team, with his stuck-out-tongue celebrations at the Styrian Grand Prix a tribute to the iconic photograph of his new namesake Albert Einstein!
Simon Patterson
