There were moments of tension in the Trackhouse team box following the incident between Raul Fernandez and Jorge Martin during the third restart of the chaotic Grand Prix held at Barcelona. The race was marked by red flags caused by two serious accidents involving Alex Marquez and Johann Zarco, and continued with the contact that ruined the race for both Aprilia riders. An avoidable incident for Fernandez, who was surprised and annoyed by how the official Noale team's rider managed his overtaking attempt.
“Firstly, I’m lucky not to have suffered any severe injuries, considering that parts of a motorcycle flew at me and I took a very hard hit. Until that moment, I believe we were having a pretty positive race. As agreed, I was trying to get to the front to create a margin to manage later on. It wasn’t possible because Alex and Pedro were following me very closely, so I had to manage the situation. I hope Alex is okay, as he took a very hard hit. From then on, there were two red flags and I’m sorry for the incident with Jorge, but I’m quite annoyed about how he handled the situation when I was about to overtake him,” Raul recounted.
“From the outside, it seems like I hit him, and it happened, but before it occurred, he saw when I braked and I decided to overtake him. If you analyze the helicopter footage, you can see that Jorge braked early and I went inside, because it was the only chance I had. It is also perfectly visible that he lifts the bike a bit and then completely closes the line when he realizes it’s me. It also happened yesterday in the Sprint and I lost two positions, one of which to Di Giannantonio - he recalled - The misfortune was that at that point I could do nothing else, and we both ended up in the gravel. As I said, I’m sorry because we had a good opportunity to get on the podium, which was the goal. I’m also sorry for the team because they did a good job, but these things happen.”
Was the maneuver very different from Ogura's? “Yes, it was” Raul responded, reaffirming his position: “I’ve got nothing against Jorge, but it seems a bit strange to me that he did the same thing twice. Fortunately, this time there’s helicopter footage since we were leading the race. I’ve seen them, analyzed them, and talked with Massimo Rivola and Davide Brivio, because the images are clear: I overtook him when he braked, and when he saw me, he let off the brake. It is perfectly visible from the helicopter images and also from the data.”
The Spanish rider then explained what happened when Rivola went to the Trackhouse box: “His viewpoint changed a bit, because he thought I had entered the track without thinking. But that was not the case. Jorge and I are in very different situations: he is clearly a title contender and I am not. I had a good chance in the race, I decided to start on medium tyres with the idea of taking the lead from the first lap to set my pace, while he found himself in a position where, in a different or difficult weekend for him, he had to save points and not position himself the way he did.”
Could the incident with Martin have repercussions on Fernandez's renewal with the American team?
“I don’t know. I put on my helmet and do the best job I can, trying to be as professional as possible. What happens outside of that is not in my hands: whether I race or not next year, I will continue to give my best - he commented - I believe we have a good opportunity every weekend to show how competitive we can be. Sometimes we succeed, other times we don’t. This weekend we tried, but we didn’t succeed. We will try again at Mugello.”
The 25-year-old then concluded with a reflection on what happened today at Montmeló regarding the race continuing despite two serious accidents.
“First of all, I hope Alex and Johann are okay, because sometimes I think the value of the sport we do isn’t fully recognized. It’s a privileged but also dangerous sport, so I believe it’s important to appreciate the rider, who regardless of results, puts on a helmet and takes on the first corner at 300 km/h - he observed - Was it right to restart the race? If Alex is okay and there are no serious damages, I think so. I know it’s not an easy decision, but in the end, we are here to race. We know there's a risk, and if everything goes well, it’s all under control and nothing else happens, I believe we should continue. But if something worse happens, I think it’s right to suspend the Grand Prix.”