BEZZECCHI ESCAPES PENALTY AFTER PRACTICE COLLISION WITH ALEX MARQUEZ

Marco Bezzecchi escaped a penalty after a collision with Alex Marquez during the opening stages of Practice at the Australian MotoGP Grand Prix. The FIM MotoGP stewards investigated the incident but ruled that no further action was necessary.

The pair were travelling through the fast Turn 3 left-hander when Marquez braked for Turn 4. They had taken different lines into Turn 3, named after Australian legend Casey Stoner, and Bezzecchi had run slightly wide. Marquez blamed Bezzecchi, saying he “miscalculated” his move. Following closely, Bezzecchi appeared surprised by the braking and tried to avoid the Gresini rider. His Aprilia struck Marquez’s leg, tearing away part of its fairing, before Bezzecchi ran onto the grass and crashed. The session was briefly stopped so debris could be cleared.

Bezzecchi described it as an ordinary racing incident. “I was very close, we were very close, and in braking, when he moved a bit, I tried to avoid him,” he said. “But I touched his leg with my bike, and when I hit the grass, I crashed. So, fortunately, nothing crazy — just an incident can happen.”

He was able to get back on track and ultimately topped Practice with a 1m26.775s lap. Although he was briefly trapped beneath his bike, he said the crash had not aggravated his injured knee. Asked about the knee, he clarified: “It was the other one.” He added that he had broken that knee a long time ago and was fortunate it was fine. Marshals ran off with his bike, he joked, while he tried to follow: “My running is still not the best! But it’s getting better.”

Marquez, who also crashed later in the session, said he had been concentrating on his own riding and was following his normal line at his usual pace. He thought Bezzecchi may have been attempting to pass because he was faster, but had misjudged the move. “But nothing happened, so it’s no big deal; that’s just how it is,” Marquez said.