Acosta and the chaos that ensues
The MotoGP Catalonia GP was stopped halfway with the red flag. The reason is a terrifying accident that occurred on the 12th of 24 laps and involved almost all the main protagonists of the race up to that point: Pedro Acosta, Alex Marquez, and Fabio Di Giannantonio.
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Everything started from a problem with Acosta’s KTM on the straight leading to turn 10. At that moment, the Murcian was the race leader. The Shark suddenly slowed down in the middle of the straight, apparently due to an engine problem that caused his bike to lose power. Alex Marquez, who was in second position and very close to his compatriot, could not avoid him and hit him, albeit ‘grazing’ him.
At that point, the Ducati Gresini went off at a tangent, hitting the outer wall of the straight and literally disintegrated. A piece of the blue GP26, probably the front wheel, flew back onto the track and hit Fabio Di Giannantonio’s other Ducati, causing him to crash. Other debris scattered throughout the affected area, slightly hitting other bikes passing by.
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Miraculously unharmed were the Aprilias of Jorge Martin and Raul Fernandez who were also in the group of the top five. The race was immediately stopped and some moments of genuine terror passed while waiting to understand the riders’ conditions. Fortunately, Acosta and Di Giannantonio are fine, managed to return to the pits on their own bikes, and are fit to restart for the second race, which will start with the ‘quick procedure’ and with the starting order of the 11th lap.
Concern for Alex Marquez
The situation of Alex Marquez is decidedly more worrying. The Ducati rider was never seen again after the crash. The rider was declared “conscious” by a communication from the Race Direction and was obviously taken away by ambulance to the medical center, but that is all that is known at the moment. It is expected that once discharged from the medical center, the Catalan will still be taken to a hospital in Barcelona for all necessary checks.
