The Aragon Grand Prix has just ended. With it, a controversy has been born. The clash between Pecco Bagnaia and Alex Marquez has caused a lot of ink to flow, and it is sometimes difficult to be discerning.. In this episode of Let's talk MotoGP, we will try to decide on this thorny question. So, who is responsible? Should this merit a penalty? Here we go. Before we begin, I would like to remind you that these articles are subjective. They are my word only, and should be taken as reasoned opinions.
The contentious action
Let us first return to the context that led to this accident. Pecco Bagnaia, in difficulty at the start, had a hard time getting rid of his opponents on a track that was as tricky as possible; we will talk about it later. The Italian was coming back very strongly on Alex Marquez, installed in third place. At the foot of the Aragon wall, turn n°12, on the left. The Gresini driver missed a little, did not go off the track however – this detail will be important – and returned a little abruptly to the trajectory. Then, Pecco Bagnaia, thinking that Alex Marquez would take more time to return to the apex for the next turn, on the right, took the outside. Marquez, half a bike behind but too close to avoid contact, hooks Bagnaia. You can watch the action again in the video below:
THE HUGE CLASH BETWEEN FRANCESCO BAGNAIA AND ALEX MARQUEZ 😱😱😱#AragonGP | #MotoGP pic.twitter.com/VG7qQmlYN3
- CANAL + MotoGP ™ (@CanalplusMotoGP) September 1, 2024
Who do I think is responsible? First of all, I want to say that I do not attribute total responsibility to one or the other. I was quite surprised – perhaps I should not have been – to see that so many people took the defense of a single protagonist. The inherent one-sidedness of social networks, no doubt. Yes, Alex Marquez seems "a little more" guilty than Bagnaia. As I said in Portimao when Pecco and Marc Marquez harpooned each other, I think the responsibility always lies more with the one who messes up first.
Here, Alex Marquez missed but did not go off the track. He has the right to defend his position at the next corner. He has the right to try to catch up. Pecco Bagnaia's maneuver is inherently risky, contact is always possible in these situations - and we see it very often, in reality. Add to that the fact that Bagnaia leaves little space between himself and the apex. I think Marquez is more at fault but if I had to express it in percentages, it would be 60/40., simply because being inside he had more control over the outcome than Bagnaia.
Bagnaia shot himself in the foot
This conclusion concerns only the action itself. On the other hand, if we zoom out and observe the physiognomy of the race, Bagnaia made the least intelligent choice possible. I'm surprised that a three-time world champion would make this kind of mistake., because it is a real mistake to attack this driver, on this track, at this time, in this way.
He has extenuating circumstances, because the tarmac was seriously lacking in grip off the line. He who always manages to find the opening properly did not know how to move enough, perhaps for fear of falling a few centimetres from the clean passage. Jorge Martin, earlier, struggled to overtake Acosta while he is one of the most incisive. Additional example (which put me on the right track), Brad Binder did not try anything on Bagnaia when he was following him closely, and that is not the house style..
Knowing that it was so difficult to overtake, why tempt the devil? Bagnaia was much faster at the moment of impact – he was catching up with him, in the previous loops, by almost a second per lap –. He would have had plenty of time to overtake him in the braking of the first corner, or perhaps on the straight, in the slipstream. He would have passed, and in any case, he could not go and catch Martin and Marquez, far ahead. An additional factor that should have made him wait: his opposite number.
Alex Marquez is known for his misjudgments and aggressive driving. The greatest know how to adapt to their opponents. Fernando Alonso, for example, said that it was possible to have long battles with Sebastian Vettel because he knew that his rival was not going to make a mistake. Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez (in 2019, in particular) studied those they were following for a long time before taking action. It is a trait that Bagnaia does not yet have, although he could add it to his arsenal in a few years. Pecco is a top-class striker, he doesn't ask himself any questions. And Alex Marquez is probably the last driver with whom you can afford to start a dance at 300 km/h. All the drivers have already complained about it, or almost.
The World vs Alex Marquez
I have rarely seen so many drivers gang up on one another. All were invited to comment on the images, and a sort of unanimity emerged: Alex Marquez is believed to be the culprit. Only Aleix Espargaro has vaguely defended him; the more moderate ones like Pedro Acosta and Marc Marquez say that it is difficult to judge, that it is necessary to qualify. But for the rest, the question does not arise. Fabio Quartararo thinks that the little brother Marquez is at fault, while Miguel Oliveira has been downright vehement in his remarks. The two concerned are preaching for their parish, of course..
The most damning testimony comes from Marco Bezzecchi, who destroyed Alex Marquez with a murderous monologue in front of journalists.. But his opinion is biased because Pecco Bagnaia is his great friend; in the same way, Marc Marquez was not going to overwhelm his brother without restraint.
Conclusion
From my point of view, if we judge only the action, Alex Marquez seems guilty, which was the observation of the majority of drivers. But I would not go so far as to attribute all the faults to him. However, I do not think that it deserves a penalty, because it was not an attack in any way, he had nowhere to go. When both parties are involved, it is better to decide on a racing fact. And then, external considerations such as the situation in the championship or the potential injuries of each must not be taken into account: We must always judge the act, not the consequences.
I would just add that Bagnaia should have abstained. He rushed a bit, and he certainly did not do justice to his great racing intelligence. The big loser in Aragon is him, not Alex Marquez.
I'm curious to know what you think about it. So tell me in the comments!
Cover photo: Michelin Motorsport