Marini: MotoGP should consider football-style approach to in-race incidents

The first-time poleman enjoyed a podium showing in the sprint race at Mandalika last Saturday but was unable to fight for another rostrum in the grand prix. 

A collision triggered by KTM’s Binder took Marini down on the second lap, with the Italian retiring a few tours later having remounted to serve a long lap penalty he had hanging over him for an incident in India. 

Binder was involved in another incident later in the race when he ran too hot into Turn 2 and forced RNF Aprilia’s Miguel Oliveira to run through the gravel. 

The South African was handed a long lap penalty for each incident, which he later said he felt he fully deserved after getting to the chequered flag in sixth. 

In recent years, long-lap penalties have become a standard punishment for most in-race incidents.

Marini suggests MotoGP should look at introducing a sliding scale for repeat offenders in one race, akin to the yellow and red cards in football. 

“This is a strange case, that maybe happened for the first time, I don’t know,” the VR46 rider explained. 

“But maybe the penalty, we can speak about this and maybe the second penalty can be a little bit worse as in football, like with the yellow card and then the red card. 

Luca Marini, VR46 Racing Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

“Something like this. We should think together because we want more safety, as usual. So, that will be a point in the next safety commission, I think.”

Marini says Binder came to explain what happened in their tangle and calmed down after finding out the KTM rider suffered from brake pad knockback on the way into Turn 10 – which affected his ability to stop. 

“Well, I have pain in my thumb like in Le Mans, the incident was similar,” Marini added, referencing a collision he had at the French GP in May. 

“I got hit from behind and it looks like my thumb… I don’t know what happened, but the feeling is as bad as it was in Le Mans. 

“It was impossible [to avoid]. I just saw a flash, but Brad went to my office and explained to me everything and now I am less angry. 

“He said over the kerb he had a moment of the bike, and sometimes it can happen that the pads of the front brake are far away [knocked back]. 

“This happened to me also this weekend, but it’s just bad luck I think in my case. This is something I cannot manage.”