Neil Hodgson shares what Simon Crafar told him after Marc Marquez’s controversial Jerez Sprint win

Add as preferred source on Google

Neil Hodgson says Simon Crafar told him that the MotoGP stewards had a “long, hard look” to check whether Marc Marquez broke any rules when he won the Jerez Sprint.

Marquez scored his second Sprint Race victory of the 2026 MotoGP season so far last week at the Spanish Grand Prix. But the circumstances that saw the Ducati rider triumph at Jerez proved controversial, after he cut across the grass at the final corner to pit after he crashed.

The 33-year-old had decided to stay out behind his brother, Gresini ace Alex Marquez, after rain started to fall around the Angel Nieto circuit in Andalusia. But the conditions at the last corner were worse than Marquez had expected and he lost the front of his GP26 on turn-in.

As Marquez was quick to grab the clutch to prevent his engine from cutting out, the seven-time MotoGP champion waited for the other riders who did not pit for their second bikes to pass before he cut over the track. Yet doing so irked many fans who felt it merited a penalty.

Simon Crafar told Neil Hodgson he checked whether Marc Marquez broke any rules to win the Jerez Sprint

LCR Honda rider Johann Zarco was also surprised to see Marquez avoid a penalty and go on to win the Jerez Sprint. He believed the Spaniard should have had to do another lap before pitting, whereas Aprilia’s Jorge Martin felt Marquez winning after crashing was “amazing”.

READ MORE: Jerez Sprint results as Marc Marquez wins despite crashing in the rain

Yet the stewards did not hit Marquez with a penalty that would have likely cost him the win in the Jerez Sprint, as the Ducati ace did not break any rules. The white line that defines the track limits at Jerez’s final corner is not the same as the white line that defines the pit lane.

Crafar, the chairman of the FIM MotoGP Steward Panel, told Hodgson after the Jerez Sprint that he and his team took a long look to make sure that Marquez had not broken any rules by cutting the track. Hodgson also says he found it “genius” how Marquez won the Sprint.

Hodgson said on Gas It Out: “There are rules for everything. And the stewards, I spoke to Simon, they had to have a really long, hard look through the book. And all the people that are paid decent money, all the experts, nobody could find one rule that that man broke.

“Look, you either like Marc or you don’t. But you have to admire tenacity, skill, intelligence, the wherewithal, everything. I can’t even think of the words.

“But all the haters, I went on X, and I can see all the haters… So much hate. I know generally if people are angry or grumpy, they’re more likely to post. But anyway, [there was] so much hate for Marc being a genius winning that race. I mean, it was incredible, wasn’t it?”

While no rules were technically broken this time, it is thought that MotoGP chiefs know the rules must be changed after Marquez’s Jerez Sprint victory proved so controversial. It is said that changes are possible to clarify where riders have to enter the pit lane to avoid a repeat.

Marquez simply benefitted from a grey area in MotoGP’s rulebook in its current guise to pit for his second bike by cutting over the grass at Jerez’s final corner after he crashed. It must also be said that Marquez lost time to his rivals by waiting for riders to pass before pitting.