How MotoGP escaped its darkest day by centimetres in a race defined by relief, fear and two horrifying crashes
It should have been the local hero’s homecoming. Instead, Barcelona so nearly spelled double disaster. Rather than celebrating Alex Marquez’s (Gresini Ducati) brilliance, two of the biggest, ugliest crashes in recent memory cast a dark cloud over the Catalan’s home Grand Prix and overshadowed Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) edging his way into title contention.
The Italian was the first to admit his triumph paled in importance to the conditions of both Marquez and Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) soon after. The Spaniard had dismounted from his bike at sickening speed after colliding with the back of Pedro Acosta’s Red Bull KTM, when the RC16 cut out on the exit of Turn 9 due to a reported electronics issue.
Not only was it miraculous Marquez avoided serious contact with the trackside wall; debris from his exploding Ducati could well have killed Di Giannantonio, Zarco and Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) on the run to Turn 10. Terrifying parallels could be drawn with Franco Morbidelli’s destroyed machine nearly collecting Valentino Rossi in Austria, 2020. All three were fortunate to get away with abrasions in an aftermath that resembled a plane wreckage.
Zarco’s fortune was short-lived. The restart was just one turn old when the Frenchman tagged the back of Luca Marini (HRC Castrol) on the run to Turn 1. He should have slid off and to the gravel with the minimum of fuss. But Pecco Bagnaia (Lenovo Ducati) was to his left and the Frenchman’s left leg was then caught up in the rear of the Ducati as both rider and machine cartwheeled sickeningly through the gravel.
Such was the violence of both incidents it was rational to fear the worst. Yet in a barely believable turn of events, neither suffered life-threatening injuries. Marquez’s amounted to a partially fractured C7 vertebra and right collarbone break. Somehow Zarco only emerged with a small fracture above the ankle and knee ligament damage. Both posted photos smiling from their hospital beds on Sunday evening and were released on Monday.
On days like this, racing and results are trivial. Bagnaia found the right tone when speaking after: “Considering what happened, you can only say thanks to the one who saved us all.”
The worries for their wellbeing understandably took away from a weekend of high-quality racing. The Circuit of Barcelona-Catalunya’s track surface has long been infamous for its lack of grip. A further curveball was thrown in when temperatures were unusually cool for mid-May. Michelin’s front tyre allocation, decided before the season starts, was off.
That somewhat threw the order, and closed everything up. With the front on the limit, it was hard to find the limit. Friday’s Practice session was the closest on record (0.269s covered the top ten).
Amidst it all, Aprilia’s factory team was caught out. Jorge Martin (Aprilia Racing), who just a week before had looked like a world beater, suffered five crashes, including a nasty Friday morning fall, which saw him follow his bike into the airfence at Turn 12. Diagnosed with a mild concussion, it was troubling to see him freely passed fit for that afternoon. Meanwhile, Bezzecchi lost his way on Saturday and never quite found comfort in the track’s numerous heavy braking zones, which meant he was never a front runner.
In their absence, Acosta, Marquez and Di Giannantonio came to the fore. Acosta was nothing short of box office all weekend, grabbing only his second MotoGP pole, and pushing Marquez until the very end of the Sprint. Again, the difference between the pair at the flag was a record for a Saturday race – just 0.041s separated first and second, with Di Giannantonio less than half a second behind.
The second half of Sunday’s race was beautifully poised, too. In a race of tyre management, it was curious to see whether had Marquez burned up his rear Michelin after ferocious early fights with Fernandez, Zarco and Martin to catch leader Acosta? Sadly, we’ll never know after an electronics issue caused Acosta’s RC16 to cut out exiting Turn 9 on lap twelve.
Impressively, he was undeterred for the second restart. With Marquez absent, Fernandez taking out Martin and Di Giannantonio blowing the start, it appeared the stars had aligned for a debut MotoGP win. Di Giannantonio had other ideas, his Ducati managing its tyres much better in the closing laps to take a first win since late 2023 – a fine reward for his early season persistence.
The sight of him passing long-time leader Acosta and pulling away with ease must have been as sickening for the KTM rider – he was galled to see the Italian looking back at him after a last lap pass in Le Mans – as Ai Ogura’s (Trackhouse Aprilia) last corner shunt into the gravel.
To his credit, Acosta refused to discuss details of the race, instead focussing on the serious incidents of the day. “I will not talk today about the race because I think it’s not really important. I just want to send strength to Alex and Johann.” On this basis, surely that maiden win isn’t far away.
Watching the two incidents from a safe distance was difficult enough. God knows how the riders got back in the zone for the restarts. “I just did it,” was Franco Morbidelli’s (VR46 Ducati) blunt explanation of how he maintained focus in trying circumstances, indicating there was no room for contemplation of any kind.
Some, like Marini, didn’t question the push for a third start. Yet some felt it unnecessary. “It’s not nice that with two guys in the hospital we have to make a third race,” said Acosta. “I always say that the show must go on. But the health of the guys that make the show is much more important than the show.”
Another point of contention: Zarco was seen icing his left ankle after being hit by debris from Marquez’s bike. Could that have played a role in his struggles to stop the bike at Turn 1? And just how was Bagnaia passed fit for the second restart when he complained of dizziness aboard his bike from the third lap? Yes, these guys are gladiators. But there must be a more rigorous method of checking them after such incidents.
But rather than anger, the emotion should be one of relief. But for centimetres, this could have been MotoGP’s darkest day in a generation.
