Marco Bezzecchi
MotoGP pundit Sylvain Guintoli has shared his surprise at the punishment that stewards handed out to Jorge Martin following his ‘dangerous’ crash at Balaton Park.
The Aprilia ace took three of his rivals out of the race at turn one in the Hungarian Grand Prix, with teammate and championship leader Marco Bezzecchi being one of the unlucky riders that the overly ambitious Jorge Martin collected.
Jorge Martin apologises for causing the crash at the start of the Hungarian GP. How would you feel if you were Marco Bezzecchi?
Francesco Bagnaia blamed the Hungarian asphalt for the crash, but Martin was deemed to be at fault by the stewards in attendance and was subsequently handed a double Long Lap Penalty (LLP) for the next round of racing at Brno.
Thankfully, all the riders involved in the crash came out of it unscathed, but the recent Catalan Grand Prix showcased just how disastrous things can be if riders get tangled up in first corner incidents. As such, Sylvain Guintoli believes MotoGP were too lenient on the Spaniard.
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Sylvain Guintoli slams MotoGP stewards for ‘very light’ Jorge Martin penalty
In the aftermath of the incident, MotoGP fans called for Martin to be handed a race ban for his part in the four-bike pile-up.
Both Aprilias are OUT in a five-rider crash at the start! 😲 Was Jorge Martin’s double long-lap penalty fair?
Martin, Bezzecchi, Di Giannantonio, Aldeguer and Fernandez are all out
While Guintoli didn’t specify whether a ban was warranted for the incident, he did highlight how the 2024 world champion deserved a ‘harsher punishment’ for causing a crash that could have ended up being a lot more serious.
“To be honest, I thought the penalty was very light as well,” the Frenchman said on the Gas It Out podcast. “Just a double long lap penalty? When you’ve done it already, I know it’s not this year, it was last year, but it’s a similar incident: taking people out at the start.”
Guintoli was referencing Martin’s crash at last year’s Japanese Grand Prix, where he took Bezzecchi out with a similar move at the start of the Sprint race. The Spaniard was later ruled out for another five rounds after breaking his collarbone in the crash.
He continued, “Like, that is so dangerous. We’re so lucky that there’s nobody with a really serious injury. You can get run over, you can really hit somebody in the body, in the leg, it can be horrendous.
“So we’re very lucky there were no injuries, but this kind of situation, we don’t want them anymore. So they’re going to have to do something about it. If it’s not a harsher punishment, then they need to take those ride-height devices off.”
Massimo Rivola was furious with Jorge Martin after his Hungarian GP crash
Due to the fact that the crash saw three of Aprilia’s bikes retire from the race at the opening corner, the factory’s chief, Massimo Rivola, publicly blasted the Spaniard in the press.
The Italian accused his rider of making a rookie mistake with his hasty entry into turn one, which garnered some criticism from figures within the MotoGP paddock.
Three-time premier class title-winner Jorge Lorenzo defended Martin for his part in the crash, while a former MotoGP team boss, Ricard Jove, accused Rivola of having a ‘vendetta’ against the 28-year-old.
The team principal reportedly changed his tune when talking to the written press at Balaton Park, having had time to calm down and take another look at the incident.
Still, Martin was deemed to be at fault by the stewards, and his result at the upcoming Czechia Grand Prix is very likely to be hampered by having to serve two LLPs.
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