Yamaha rider Fabio Quartararararo has been given a long lap penalty for the next round at Silverstone for his crash last time out at Assen. And he’s absolutely fuming.
👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/EPeLgTk3MG
— Fabio Quartararo (@FabioQ20) June 27, 2022
And so are Yamaha.
OFFICIAL STATEMENT BY LIN JARVIS FOLLOWING SUNDAY’S STEWARDS PANEL DECISION TO PENALIZE FABIO QUARTARARO AT THE BRITISH GP
📰 https://t.co/qHR1Dn3f0J#MonsterYamaha | #MotoGP | #DutchGP pic.twitter.com/K393SSejqi
— Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP (@YamahaMotoGP) June 28, 2022
Their epic grump seems to revolve around how Takaaki Nakagami received no penalty for his spectacular smash at Catalunya where he went full ancestral kamikaze and fell off attempting to overtake 10 riders into the first corner. Meanwhile Fabio has been penalised for his far less serious looking incident that appeared to be a simple rider error.
So was chief steward Fast Freddie Spencer correct? Or has he been on the dodgy corned beef again?
We’ve broken both incidents down and scored each section with a penalty rating to find out what’s actually going on.
Dangerous riding
Were they classed as riding dangerously?
Takaaki
Even before the crash Nakagami’s riding had come under question. The race before Alex Rins had moaned that the Japanese rider had forced him to crash but most of us ignored the Spaniard believing his beef was to deflect away from the fact he’d crashed again. Also a few seasons before that Taka’s then-teammate Cal Crutchlow was enraged by some dangerous riding he’d done – obviously because it was Cal we all just laughed.
But they both were probably correct. Takaaki’s crash at Catalunya was hailed by every rider as being a direct result of dangerous riding. Although it’s worth noting that most riders said this whilst Taka was in hospital…so weren’t at risk of a silencing chopstick to the peeper.
Finally, and probably most importantly, even Nakagami admitted that his riding in Spain was dangerous. So that’s everyone in agreement…
Penalty Score: ⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽
Fabio
Fabio’s not a dangerous rider and never has been. Minimising all danger is a classic French trait taught in school, along with drinking wine, from a very young age.
His crash was deemed as a racing incident. Even Aleix Espargaro, who was the only other casualty of Quartararararo’s spill, admitted straight afterward that it was unfortunate event but there was no malice.
Penalty Score: ⚽
Carnage caused
How did it negatively affect the other riders?
Takaaki
Taka’s crash into the first corner was a horror show. Worse than that time Randy Mamola pranced around in his y-fronts. Although he was lucky not to rub his face completely off on the back wheel of a Ducati his antics proved more costly for his victims Alex Rins and Pecco Bagnaia…or did it?
For Rins it was a trip to hospital with a broken wrist and flight sickness. The injury has left him missing races and being in pain every time he’s on the bike. However on the plus side Alex can now say he was correct and blame any future crashes he has on Nagagami either directly or indirectly.
Meanwhile Takasan’s other target, Pecco Bagnaia, was taken out of the race which effectively ruined any hope he had of winning the championship. But as we saw in Assen Pecco can only win races when he’s out of contention for the title. So again, a blessing?
Penalty Score: ⚽⚽⚽
Fabio
Even by lap two at Assen the top three were far and away from the also-rans. So when Quartararararo fell he only took out Aleix…and he didn’t even knock him off (something that would have sent shudders down Marc Marquez’s spine…if he still had nerves left in it). The Aprilia rider rejoined the track and had the best MotoGP race of his career. So really, absolutely no victims here.
Penalty Score: ⚽
Championship potential
Does the penalty help make the MotoGP championship battle more exciting?
Takaaki
Nakagami will never in the history of the universe be a title contender. He may top a few free practices and maybe get into Q2 now and again. But he won’t win races or even trouble the podium. He’s in the championship (for now) mainly thanks to the shape of his eyes.
Giving Taka any kind of penalty is just a waste of paperwork. No one cares and no one will notice either way.
Penalty Score: ⚽
Fabio
Up until Assen Fabio hadn’t made any mistakes and was riding at a higher class than the rest of the field. Despite the straight-line speed woes of his Yamaha the Frenchman had been able to stretch out a lead in the championship. Before Assen it looked like Fabio was easing to his next world championship…
Step forward Freddie to help out.
Giving Quartararararo a long lap penalty almost certainly will cost him a win at Silverstone. Dorna will be keeping their finger’s crossed that it will also allow Aleix Espargaro to gain some extra points in the hope that it will keep the championship alive. No one will want to turn up to Valencia in the freezing winter for the final round otherwise.
Penalty Score: ⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽
Honda
Do they ride for Freddie’s favourite manufacturer?
Takaaki
Yes! No matter how you look at it Nakagami is riding a Honda. So no penalty score here.
Penalty Score: ⚽
Fabio
Sorry Fabio, looks like you’ve dropped the Couilles de Mouton again. Yamaha have been making Honda look rather stupid these past few years – so Fabio and his team only have themselves to blame.
Penalty Score: ⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽
Final penalty scores
Takaaki
⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽
Fabio
⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽⚽
As you can see the facts clearly show that Quartararararo deserved a penalty more than Nakagami. Obviously the fine line between penalty and no penalty must fall conveniently between both scores.