Photo: motogp.com capture
I have to admit it, the first time I watched the moment Marquez went down at Sepang yesterday, one name came to my mind: Zinedine Zidane. Yes, the infamous headbutt attack of Zidane against Materazzi in the 2006 world football cup final.
It was hard to believe that the most experienced GP rider of all time went for such a "solution" to get rid of a rider trailing him, but still, Zidane was also one of the best football players of all time back in the day...
Now I am no longer sure that the Race Direction made the right decision. I am not saying that Rossi is the innocent victim in the entire matter, but I am definitely not buying into the "Marquez is an angel, Rossi is vile" thing.
Thankfully, Dorna is using tons of cameras, and the various angles can help a guy get a better picture of what happened there at Turn 13. The helicopter shots are especially useful in trying to determine what the exact course of action was.
At least in this matter, it looks like total consensus. Marquez was not entirely innocent, and neither was Rossi. The problem is that the latter, Webb says, was the one who acted outside the sporting rules, and this is how the Race Direction motivates their decision.
Yamaha and Rossi appealed the decision and took the case in front of an FIM steward, but he rejected the appeal. In a press conference Yamaha boss Lin Jarvis had after the rejection, he explained that if the steward does not admit the appeal, the case is closed, with the initial decision being maintained.
Rossi now holds a rather frail advantage over Lorenzo and things became even iffier after Sepang. With Rossi first having to fight his way up from the last position on the grid, and then deal with the riders at the top, his fight for the tenth GP title is going to be huge.
If anything, it looks like Marquez handed the title to Lorenzo, or at least, dramatically increased his chances. A very bitter Rossi told the media that he would have loved to battle Lorenzo in normal circumstances at the end of the season, but unfortunately, it looks like Marquez decided to make the calls who fights who and in what manner.
The Italian says that the footage is his only ally in proving that he has no intention to cause Marquez to crash, and in fact, it was the Repsol Honda rider who crashed into him before falling off the bike. I ran the helicopter video in slow motion, and can ascertain that Marquez bumped into Rossi.
Still, at this point in the crash, we failed to see Rossi running even wider, as some claim. On the contrary, the Yamaha looks on a predictable trajectory, albeit a tad wider than in normal conditions, whereas Marquez' machine can be seen weaving and getting close to Rossi's.
Marquez making contact with Rossi first is a thing not even Webb or any other guys in their right mind can deny. It is easy to see that the Honda bumped into the Yamaha, with Marquez' head apparently hitting Rossi in the leg.
The leg moving outwards just as Marquez loses edge grip and low-sides is a mysterious moment. It may be the natural rebound of the body, which, synced with the tumble of the Spaniard, could mistakenly look like a kick.
Physics also seems to contradict Marquez, as it is hard to believe that a knee jerk can destabilize a heavy bike to such a degree so that its experienced rider loses control. Marquez mumbled something about being hit in the brake lever and then losing the front, but he didn't seem too convincing.
On the other hand, Rossi said right from the beginning that he was the one bumped into, and had his foot removed from the peg, and that the move of his leg was natural, and not a kick, as most of us believed in the first place.
Conspiracy theorists might see a big point in such a claim, but this is wackier than blaming aliens or freemasons for the entire affair. Plus, Rossi never claimed he was entirely innocent.
Whether you believe that he is capable of putting up such schemes in only minutes, riding in such a manner as to have Marquez exactly where he wants him to be and then cause the Honda to crash out of the race without injuring the riders, it's up to you. I strongly believe that a MotoGP race doesn't provide enough respiro for weaving such plans.
An online petition already gathered more than 210,000 supporters that urge Race Direction to reconsider their decision. The strongest point against the penalty decision is that the Race Direction acknowledged the fact that Marquez wasn't minding his own business and rode in a manner that was obviously destined to hinder Rossi... but that the rules that govern the sports don't have a specific paragraph for this.
Obviously, the matter is delicate, because acting upon the principle that "what is not forbidden is allowed" is seldom healthy. The more I watch the incident from all the angles, the more it looks like a more sensible decision was to penalize both riders, but with fewer points, more in the vein of telling others that such riding is a no-no. Here you have a video of the squirmish between Rossi and Marquez.
As for the sport, I guess that the Sepang crash incident made everything and everyone feel unnerved, frustrated. Marquez proved once more that he can play dirty and attracted some extra haters, while Rossi fought with fire and did no better.
Lorenzo is also talking about harsher penalties that the Race Direction should have handed Rossi, adding that in case of a wet race, Rossi's start from the back of the grid would not be too much of a handicap. Poor Dani Pedrosa saw his victory overshadowed by the on- and off-track madness.
The first November weekend will be a fiery one, regardless of whether the Race Direction will review their decision (if possible) or not. I just hope that MotoGP doesn't evolve into Destruction Rally.
EDIT: And here are new developments in this thorny case.
Now I am no longer sure that the Race Direction made the right decision. I am not saying that Rossi is the innocent victim in the entire matter, but I am definitely not buying into the "Marquez is an angel, Rossi is vile" thing.
Thankfully, Dorna is using tons of cameras, and the various angles can help a guy get a better picture of what happened there at Turn 13. The helicopter shots are especially useful in trying to determine what the exact course of action was.
Both riders share the blame, Race Director Mike Webb says
In a short interview, Race Director Mike Webb has explained that he and those who conducted the hearing of both Rossi and Marquez after the race strongly believe that both riders share the blame for the incident.At least in this matter, it looks like total consensus. Marquez was not entirely innocent, and neither was Rossi. The problem is that the latter, Webb says, was the one who acted outside the sporting rules, and this is how the Race Direction motivates their decision.
Yamaha and Rossi appealed the decision and took the case in front of an FIM steward, but he rejected the appeal. In a press conference Yamaha boss Lin Jarvis had after the rejection, he explained that if the steward does not admit the appeal, the case is closed, with the initial decision being maintained.
There is a title at stake, but the truth is still out there
The biggest problem is that with Rossi being handed three penalty points, he is forced to take the start from the back of the grid at Valencia. The new penalty adds to an existing point, and this is the source of this big problem.Rossi now holds a rather frail advantage over Lorenzo and things became even iffier after Sepang. With Rossi first having to fight his way up from the last position on the grid, and then deal with the riders at the top, his fight for the tenth GP title is going to be huge.
If anything, it looks like Marquez handed the title to Lorenzo, or at least, dramatically increased his chances. A very bitter Rossi told the media that he would have loved to battle Lorenzo in normal circumstances at the end of the season, but unfortunately, it looks like Marquez decided to make the calls who fights who and in what manner.
Rossi's leg move doesn't look like a proper kick, and Marquez made the first contact
Yamaha and Rossi maintain their position and claim that the Doctor was at fault, but not to such a degree as to receive such a penalty. Rossi admits that he tried to shake Marquez off his tail by riding in a different manner around certain corners, hoping to cause trouble for the Spaniard.The Italian says that the footage is his only ally in proving that he has no intention to cause Marquez to crash, and in fact, it was the Repsol Honda rider who crashed into him before falling off the bike. I ran the helicopter video in slow motion, and can ascertain that Marquez bumped into Rossi.
Still, at this point in the crash, we failed to see Rossi running even wider, as some claim. On the contrary, the Yamaha looks on a predictable trajectory, albeit a tad wider than in normal conditions, whereas Marquez' machine can be seen weaving and getting close to Rossi's.
Marquez making contact with Rossi first is a thing not even Webb or any other guys in their right mind can deny. It is easy to see that the Honda bumped into the Yamaha, with Marquez' head apparently hitting Rossi in the leg.
The leg moving outwards just as Marquez loses edge grip and low-sides is a mysterious moment. It may be the natural rebound of the body, which, synced with the tumble of the Spaniard, could mistakenly look like a kick.
Physics also seems to contradict Marquez, as it is hard to believe that a knee jerk can destabilize a heavy bike to such a degree so that its experienced rider loses control. Marquez mumbled something about being hit in the brake lever and then losing the front, but he didn't seem too convincing.
On the other hand, Rossi said right from the beginning that he was the one bumped into, and had his foot removed from the peg, and that the move of his leg was natural, and not a kick, as most of us believed in the first place.
Is Rossi the master of disguise?
Some say that Rossi is such a cunning guy that he weighed his chances and waited for the perfect time trying to make it look natural and inconspicuous, like his run-off at Assen earlier this year.Conspiracy theorists might see a big point in such a claim, but this is wackier than blaming aliens or freemasons for the entire affair. Plus, Rossi never claimed he was entirely innocent.
Whether you believe that he is capable of putting up such schemes in only minutes, riding in such a manner as to have Marquez exactly where he wants him to be and then cause the Honda to crash out of the race without injuring the riders, it's up to you. I strongly believe that a MotoGP race doesn't provide enough respiro for weaving such plans.
An online petition already gathered more than 210,000 supporters that urge Race Direction to reconsider their decision. The strongest point against the penalty decision is that the Race Direction acknowledged the fact that Marquez wasn't minding his own business and rode in a manner that was obviously destined to hinder Rossi... but that the rules that govern the sports don't have a specific paragraph for this.
Obviously, the matter is delicate, because acting upon the principle that "what is not forbidden is allowed" is seldom healthy. The more I watch the incident from all the angles, the more it looks like a more sensible decision was to penalize both riders, but with fewer points, more in the vein of telling others that such riding is a no-no. Here you have a video of the squirmish between Rossi and Marquez.
As for the sport, I guess that the Sepang crash incident made everything and everyone feel unnerved, frustrated. Marquez proved once more that he can play dirty and attracted some extra haters, while Rossi fought with fire and did no better.
Lorenzo is also talking about harsher penalties that the Race Direction should have handed Rossi, adding that in case of a wet race, Rossi's start from the back of the grid would not be too much of a handicap. Poor Dani Pedrosa saw his victory overshadowed by the on- and off-track madness.
The first November weekend will be a fiery one, regardless of whether the Race Direction will review their decision (if possible) or not. I just hope that MotoGP doesn't evolve into Destruction Rally.
EDIT: And here are new developments in this thorny case.
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