Marc Marquez “distracted” but “no yellow flags” in Brno qualifying crash
A "distracted" Marc Marquez crashed while chasing pole in Brno MotoGP qualifying, escapes penalty since no yellow flags were present for Johann Zarco's accident.
Marc Marquez says a momentary distraction from Johann Zarco’s crash caused his own accident during Saturday’s Czech MotoGP qualifying at Brno.
Chasing a surprise 0.2s gap to Ducati team-mate Francesco Bagnaia, Marquez was fastest through the opening three sectors of his final lap when he lost the front at Turn 13 and slid into the gravel.
But TV images then showed Johann Zarco already walking away from an accident at the same corner.
If yellow flags had been waving for Zarco’s fall when Marquez lost control, the runway title leader would face a double long-lap penalty, as handed to Lorenzo Savadori for the same offence last weekend in Germany.
However, yellows were not visible in any replays of the incident, with Marquez also confirming in parc ferme that no flags were present.
The time between the two riders falling is thought to have been less than one second, later confirmed by CCTV footage, while MotoGP confirmed there would be no penalty.
“No, no, no [yellow flags],” said Marquez in parc ferme.
“I’m OK. I’m happy to be in second position, but my crash was more of a distraction because I was already braking super hard.
“When Zarco crashed, I saw some smoke. Then my vision goes a bit over there, I went a bit wide, and I just lost the front.”
Despite the fall, the title leader retained second on the grid, slotting between pole-sitter Bagnaia and Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo for both the Sprint and Grand Prix.
“Today was a special day, a special way to ride the bike,” added Marquez, who had been quickest during a wet Friday.
“It was difficult to do the first time attack of the weekend already in qualifying, but I’m happy to be on the front row.”
Marquez has swept the Sprint/Grand Prix victories at the past four rounds, meaning he will be seeking a ninth race win in a row this afternoon.
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Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
