MV Agusta Reparto Corse Forward Racing Team agreement terminated
The serious misconduct by Romano Fenati towards Stefano Manzi during the Moto2 race at the Gran Premio di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli will have repercussions for the future, beyond the black flag shown to Fenati and the two-race ban imposed by Race Direction. MV Agusta will not be represented by Fenati in 2019, the year which will see the return of the Varese factory to Grand Prix motorcycle racing in the Moto2 World Championship. The agreement between MV Agusta Reparto Corse Forward Racing Team and Romano Fenati has been terminated.
“In all my years of watching sport, I have never seen behaviour as dangerous as this,” says Giovanni Castiglioni, President of MV Agusta. “A rider who can act like this can never represent the values of our company, and our brand. For this reason, we do not want him to be the rider with which MV Agusta makes its return to the world championship.”
“After the disgraceful episode between Romano Fenati and Stefano Manzi, it is impossible for the team to maintain its planned collaboration with the rider from Ascoli for the 2019 season,” adds Giovanni Cuzari, Team Owner. “Fenati’s behaviour is incompatible with the sporting values of the Forward Racing Team and of MV Agusta. For this reason, though we bitterly regret it, we are forced to cancel our project with Fenati. Our sport is already extremely dangerous, and any act which increases the risks involved for the riders is intolerable. We cannot accept behaviour of this type from one of our future riders.”
Romano Fenati’s contract with the Marinelli Snipers Team terminated
Romano Fenati’s contract with the Marinelli Snipers Team has been terminated following the incident on Sunday that saw the Italian suspended from two Grands Prix.
https://twitter.com/MotoGP/status/1038748128940314624
The team published the following statement:
“Here we are. Now we can communicate that the Marinelli Snipers Team shall terminate the contract with the rider Romano Fenati, from now on, for his unsporting, dangerous and damaging conduct for the image of all. With extreme regret, we have to note that his irresponsible act endangered the life of another rider and can’t be apologised for in any way. The rider, from this moment, will not participate in any more races with the Marinelli Snipers team. The team, Marinelli Cucine, Rivacold and all the other sponsors and the people that always supported him, apologised to all the World Championship fans.”
Romano Fenati has shared the following statement
Here is the statement in full:
“I apologise to the world of sport.
This morning, with a lucid mind, I wish it had just been a bad dream.
I think about and think back to those moments, I made a disgraceful gesture, I was not a man!
A man would have finished the race and then he would have gone to Race Direction to try and get some justice for the preceding incident.
I shouldn’t have reacted to provocation.
The criticisms are correct and I understand the animosity towards me.
I want to apologise to everyone who believed in me and all those who felt hurt by my action.
A horrible image of me and of the sport has come out.
I’m not like that, people who know me well know that!
In my career, I’ve always been a just rider. Last year I was one of the few who was not penalised, I have never put someone else’s life in jeopardy, on the contrary, I have always maintained that there are riders on the track who are dangeous because of their riding style.
It’s true, unfortunately I have an impulsive character, but my intention was certainly not to hurt a rider like me rather I wanted to make him understand that what he was doing was dangerous and how I could also have done something similar to what he did to me!
I do not want to justify myself, I know that my actions were not justifiable, I just want to apologise to everyone.
Now I will have time to reflect and clear my head.”
Fenati, British Moto2 2018