Explained: Why Enea Bastianini’s Hungary MotoGP penalty defence didn’t hold up

Enea Bastianini was handed a double long lap penalty after a collision with Johann Zarco during the MotoGP Hungarian Grand Prix sprint, but felt he should have avoided punishment.

The Tech3 rider was clattered into by Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo at Turn 1 on the opening lap of last Saturday’s sprint at Balaton Park.

Enea Bastianini later claimed that this damaged his ride height device, which in turn led to his race-ending collision with LCR Honda’s Johann Zarco.

He took this defence to the FIM MotoGP stewards, but was handed a double long lap penalty as this was his second offence of the season following a start incident at the French Grand Prix.

Tech3 team boss Herve Poncharal fumed about this to UK TV broadcaster TNT Sports, who said: "He had a problem with the rear height device. He couldn’t brake properly and he took Zarco out.

"Guess what? We were the main victims of this. We are the biggest penalised rider. I am not happy. I think this is, honestly, not fair."

Crash understands Bastianini’s ride height device did activate further round the opening lap prior to his collision with Zarco.

However, not enough evidence was provided to fully clarify whether or not this was because of damage to the system or due to accidental activation.

The defence also didn’t hold up because Bastianini was aware of his ride height device being activated and did not take necessary steps to account for this when braking.

Other riders have previously stated that a lowered ride height device doesn’t negatively lessen the braking power of a MotoGP bike.

Bastianini braked later than the riders ahead of him at the moment of his collision with Zarco, which is evident from the replay footage of the crash.

Though the ride height device argument was taken into consideration, it's thought the stewards were wary of then setting a precedent that similar incidents could be excused because of unintentional ride height device activation.

Bastianini was handed a double long lap as this was his second offence of the season, with punishments increasing in severity for repeat offenders.

Why Enea Bastianini’s penalty won’t carry over despite it not being served in-race

Under the current rules, penalties earned at one event can pass over to a future round if they are not served for a reason related to the initial incident, like injury.

Bastianini didn’t complete the opening lap of the Hungarian Grand Prix due crashing at the Turn 12 chicane.

The penalty, however, has been deemed served under the current rules as he failed to complete it through a non-related incident to the punishment.

Crash understands Tech3 was working to get Bastianini out to serve the penalty after the crash, but was informed this was not necessary.

The rules on when a penalty applies are in place to avoid a situation where a rider is then circulating on a potentially hazardous motorcycle.