In a post on Instagram, the Yamaha rider congratulated the FIM (International Motorcycling Federation) commissioners for the "great job" and said he will try not to overtake next time to avoid punishment
It wasn't only Yamaha's top management that was upset with the FIM (International Motorcycling Federation) Stewards Panel at the Dutch GP on Sunday (26th). On social networks, Fabio Quartararo used irony to comment on the sanction he received for the incident with Aleix Espargaró at the start of the race in Assen.
On the fifth lap of the Assen race, Quartararo tried to attack Aleix at De Strubben, turn 5, but made a mistake and crashed, pushing the Aprilia owner off the track. Both managed to get back into contention, but Fabio missed the flag, as the tumble damaged the traction control, which caused him to be ejected from the YZR-M1 later in the race.
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The elder Espargaró, on the other hand, relied on the good performance of the RS-GP to climb the field and, at the last chicane, even managed to pass Brad Binder and Jack Miller in one shot to finish fourth.
The group formed by Andres Somolinos, Freddie Spencer, and Raffaele De Fabritiis, however, considered that Fabio acted irresponsibly and decided to impose a punishment. As a result, Fabio will have to serve a long lap at the British GP, the next race of the season.
The FIM Stewards Panel, however, went further. Instead of sticking to the punishment document, the Panel added a comment in the text forwarded to the press, judging that Quartararo had "over-ambition."
On Monday, in a post on Instagram, which was also replicated on Twitter, Fabio ironized the commissioners' decision and recalled other times when more serious accidents went unpunished. Takaaki Nakagami, for example, was not sanctioned for taking down Francesco Bagnaia and Álex Rins in the first corner of the Spanish GP, even though the Suzuki rider finished with a fractured wrist.
"Well... a long lap to the next race," Fabio began in a post on Instagram. "Now you can't try an overtake as they think you are too ambitious," he ironized.
"Since the beginning of the year, some drivers have been involved in "racing incidents", but apparently mine was too dangerous," he commented. "Congratulations to the commissioners for the amazing job you guys are doing," he poked, adding an emoji with his mouth zipped shut.
"Next time, I won't try to overtake so I don't get any punishment," he warned. "Great vacations and see you at Silverstone," he concluded.
Yamaha boss Massimo Meregalli also criticized the penalty, which he considered "harsh and inconsistent" with the other decisions handed down by the Panel throughout the 2022 season.
MotoGP now goes on vacation and will only return to action on August 7, with the British GP at Silverstone.GRANDE PRÊMIO is following all the activities of the 2022 MotoGP World Championship.