Martin penalised for MotoGP pile-up that took Bezzecchi out
Jorge Martin has been awarded a double long lap penalty for his next race after causing a Turn 1 pile-up at MotoGP’s Hungarian Grand Prix.
Martin exited Sunday’s race at the first corner after getting out of shape under braking, and lost control of his bike then clattered into Aprilia team-mate and title rival Marco Bezzecchi.
It was an incident reminiscent of the pair’s collision in last year’s sprint race at Motegi, with Sunday’s penalty falling in line with what Martin was awarded for his role in that crash last September.
The penalty is also consistent with chief steward Simon Crafar’s previous rulings, under which actions that create dangerous situations for multiple riders and/or causing a crash are penalised with a double long lap.
Aprilia confirmed both riders suffered contusions after their race was curtailed, though the pair were fortunate to get away with no fractures after being checked at the circuit medical centre.
It was a dismal day for Aprilia, with Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez also an unfortunate bystander in the incident, whilst Gresini Ducati’s Fermin Aldeguer had his race ended as a result of the crash.
Fabio Di Giannantonio also was involved, but remounted his VR46 Ducati and rode to a 12th place finish.
