Johann Zarco to face penalty on MotoGP return from horror Barcelona crash

Johann Zarco will need to serve a double long lap penalty when he eventually returns to MotoGP action.

The LCR Honda rider suffered serious knee ligament injuries after triggering a Turn 1 accident during the restarted Catalunya Grand Prix in mid-May.

Zarco fell under braking before taking down Pecco Bagnaia and Luca Marini, with the Frenchman's leg becoming tangled in the rear wheel of Bagnaia's Ducati.

Bagnaia and Marini escaped injury and were the first riders to assist Zarco at the scene.

The FIM MotoGP Stewards postponed their investigation because of Zarco's injuries, but have now handed the Frenchman a double long lap penalty for his next grand prix.

A penalty statement issued on Thursday at the Sachsenring read:

Penalty Explanation

“Following the Penalty Protocols issued to teams, this action was deemed to be an incident of Type MGP-CC5: START OF THE RACE / OPENING LAP. Actions that create a dangerous situation for multiple riders and/or causing a crash.

“As a first offence for the season, the appropriate penalty in this case is a Double Long Lap Penalty.”

Zarco, who is being replaced by Cal Crutchlow, was initially expected to undergo surgery once his wounds had healed and the risk of infection had subsided.

However, a recent update from LCR confirmed surgery is no longer required, although Zarco is not expected to be fit to return until September.

That means he is also set to miss this weekend's German MotoGP, followed by the British Grand Prix at Silverstone and the Aragon round.