The Italian Grand Prix collision between Franco Morbidelli and Maverick Vinales was resolved amicably among the riders - though the Tech3 KTM MotoGP team made it clear it felt Morbidelli was out of order.
With potential podium pace in his KTM RC16 all through the weekend, Vinales laboured a little to overtake Morbidelli for fourth on Sunday but finally did so at the start of lap nine - and prepared to set off after Pecco Bagnaia and the Marquez brothers.
But Morbidelli attempted to retaliate with a divebomb at Materassi, which caught Vinales by surprise as he took the corner like normal and was speared off the track.
Vinales gesticulated irritatedly in Morbidelli's direction after the crash, though had cooled off massively by the time of his post-race media debriefs.
Morbidelli incurred a long-lap penalty, which he turned into a double long lap by running wide while serving the initial sanction, and ended up finishing sixth.
"He came after the race, he apologised, he said he did a mistake," said Vinales of Morbidelli - and he suggested that with that the matter was closed.
But Morbidelli, though accepting of the penalty, didn't sound totally convinced of his culpability.
“We got engaged in the fight, we touched, and he ended up on the ground," Morbidelli recounted. "I'm sorry about how that fight ended.
"I had to pay for that, pay twice."
Take a look at the incident as there's confirmation that Morbidelli will need to serve another LLP 👀#ItalianGP 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/EPFrhGgohr
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) June 22, 2025
He then curiously suggested he "didn't see" the incident, because series promoter Dorna "didn't show anything". This appears to have been in reference to a lack of helicopter camera footage - though that camera will have anyway focused on the lead battle - because the incident was otherwise well-covered on TV.
"I was completely in front, I overtook him out of [Turn] 2, and I just felt the hit," Vinales said of his point of view. "If I saw the wheel, I would've picked up, of course! Because I don't want to crash.
"And I'd have gone straight, in the gravel, it's OK. But I didn't even see him.
"I didn't even see the pictures, I just felt a hit and then I was without a bike. I don't know - this is racing, to be honest."
Vinales' conciliatory tone didn't necessarily match that of his team, with Tech3 - an outfit known to be strong and argumentative in its post-race communications on occasion - insisting Morbidelli "clearly did not have the space to go on the inside".
Morbidelli was not of the same viewpoint. "If I was there [beside him], there was space, for sure. That's for sure. If there was no space, I won't have been there.”
Tech3 also quoted its team manager Nicolas Goyon as saying: "Unfortunately, Maverick was another victim added to the big list of Franco Morbidelli, who literally bumped into Maverick after he was overtaken."
The incident adds to Morbidelli's reputation as a repeat offender - one that incensed the Italian so earlier this season, after recurring sanctions for impeding rivals in practice or qualifying.
The question was also raised of whether the single long-lap penalty was sufficient - with the stewards' panel headed up by Simon Crafar presumably feeling that Morbidelli hasn't yet been guilty of causing a collision in 2025 and that his impeding offences shouldn't contribute to a more severe sanction here.
But the sanction that was imposed arguably failed. Even with the botched long-lap, Morbidelli finished sixth - a place he was likely to claim anyway had he not made the move on Vinales, given he probably was on course to finish behind Vinales and the charging Fabio Di Giannantonio, who had superb late-race pace and beat Pecco Bagnaia to third.
In fact, with Marco Bezzecchi possibly quicker, too, Morbidelli may have ended up better off as a result of the Vinales collision.
"I could give you right now 1000 explanations," said Vinales when asked whether Morbidelli's sanction was sufficient. "But it doesn't matter.
"At the end it's the job of the stewards, they decide, they put the penalties. I'm not against, not in favour. I'm neutral on that. These are the penalties. I accept, and that's it."
