Lorenzo and Petrucci close Call on the Track

Two Ducati riders had a narrow escape on Friday afternoon. One was factory rider Jorge Lorenzo, who was on an out lap at the time; the other satellite teamster Danilo Petrucci, approaching at very high speed from behind.

As Lorenzo swung across into a left-hand corner, closing the racing line, Petrucci was hard on the brakes behind, one foot down and smoking as he narrowly managed to slow enough to miss Lorenzo’s back wheel by mere centimetres, before running off into the gravel.

Petrucci’s view was clear. “Lorenzo is a rider who doesn’t think there are any other riders on the track.”

Lorenzo admitted he was not at full speed and was trying to warm his tyres, but said: “A rider behind should be paying attention to what is in front, and have enough braking distance. If he had hit me I would have gone to the moon.”

Race direction looked into it, but elected not to punish Lorenzo.

By Michael Scott