Marco Bezzecchi
Marco Bezzecchi’s Spanish Grand Prix Sprint race was cursed from before it had even got underway, thanks to a tear-off that scuppered his getaway once the lights dropped in Jerez.
Starting from P4 on the grid, the MotoGP championship leader was hoping for a relatively calm race in which he could finally start to string together some strong results in the shorter format Sprint races.
However, what ensued was far from ideal for Marco Bezzecchi. The Aprilia star quickly dropped down to P14 after the grid made their way around turn one, and he had it all to do to try and claw his way back into points-paying contention.
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Unfortunately, disaster would strike again. During the crossover period, in which the majority of riders dove into the pits for their wet-weather bikes, Bezzecchi crashed out of the race, marking his third retirement in the shorter format from four attempts this year.
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Fans react to Marco Bezzecchi’s Jerez Sprint being ruined by a tear-off
After a replay showing one of Alex Marquez’s tear-offs getting stuck under the rear wheel of Bezzecchi’s Aprilia prototype hit social media, fans were quick to express their thoughts on the matter.
The overriding sentiment was one of outcry, with a multitude of fans calling for MotoGP to ban tear-offs from being used on the approach to the grid.
Currently, there is a ban in place for tear-offs, but it is only enforced once all 22 riders are lined up and in position for the start of a race. The approach to their grid slot remains a grey area, and Bezzecchi fell foul of it on Saturday in Jerez.
One fan shared their amazement at it still being allowed before the riders line up, comparing it to a banana being thrown in Nintendo’s Mario Kart series. They wrote, “I’ve always been amazed you’re allowed to do that on the grid. It’s like Mario Kart, dropping bananas.”
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There were multiple comments of, “This should be banned,” and, “Why isn’t this banned,” while another pointed towards the fact that Bezzecchi was lucky to remain atop his bike at the start of the race.
They posted, “Tearing it off like this is dangerous for sure, lucky he didn’t fall.” Another wrote, “The tear-off thing shouldn’t be allowed on the grid, just stupid.”
It’s a sentiment that MotoGP fans have expressed for a while now, with one fan detailing how they are fed up with calling for a change. They rounded things out with, “Definitely something needs to be done, I don’t know how many times I have said that.”
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Massimo Rivola shared his fury with the issue that caused Marco Bezzecchi’s slow start
More than anyone else in the MotoGP paddock, Aprilia boss Massimo Rivola was furious with the fact that Bezzecchi was caught out by a rogue tear-off.
Cameras on the Aprilia pit wall caught the team principal waving his arms around in fury alongside Noale’s sporting director Fabiano Sterlacchini.
Unfortunately, the damage was already done, and there was nothing that Aprilia could have done to aid their stricken rider.
Bezzecchi remains the championship leader heading into Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix and will be hoping to keep his perfect record in the longer format races intact to extend his advantage in the standings.
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