MotoGP, race direction under fire in Thailand
The 2026 World Championship has begun with many emotions and even more controversy. At least in the Buriram Sprint, the action on track showed three riders capable of competing for the victory: Marc Marquez, Pedro Acosta and that Marco Bezzecchi who crashed at turn-8. And to think that most of the Ducatis were missing from the front, with Francesco Bagnaia only ninth, while Fabio Di Giannantonio and Alex Marquez practically eliminated each other. The fault of a reckless entry into turn-2 by the Spaniard, who went wide and dragged the Roman wide as well.
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Despite the incident ruining Diggia‘s race, who finished eighth, race direction did not punish Marquez’s maneuver. A decision that is hard to understand, much softer than the one that took today’s victory away from the world champion for the overtake on Acosta on the penultimate lap. Di Giannantonio does not accept it and calls for fairness and attention.
Di Giannantonio’s words
“The fact that I have a good pace is little consolation. It’s time to deliver, we could have gone really fast. Unfortunately, it’s strange that race direction still allows these kinds of dangerous maneuvers, especially in the first braking zones after the start. It was very dangerous, in the end if I don’t pick up the bike I crash with Alex and Raul Fernandez“, he commented to Sky Sport MotoGP. “I am puzzled by race direction, I expected a slightly different reaction. I went to talk to them, they told me that they will now analyze the incident in more depth. In my opinion, it’s right that all riders have a certain fear regarding the first corners and towards others. The first corners are the most dangerous of the weekend, it’s right that we all respect ourselves and our lives“.
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“We have a great package and great potential, the bike is working very well“, he continued. “Obviously when you are behind so many bikes it gets very hot, so I had to struggle a bit to climb back up, but I managed it. But all this is no longer enough for me, I can no longer say ‘It doesn’t matter, I had a good race’, I want more“.
