Lorenzo: Rossi's penalty for Marquez MotoGP clash inadequate
Jorge Lorenzo believes his Yamaha team-mate and MotoGP title rival Valentino Rossi should have received a greater penalty for taking Marc Marquez out of the Malaysian Grand Prix
Rossi was given three penalty points for the collision with Marquez as they fought for third at Sepang, resulting in a back of the grid start for the title decider at Valencia in a fortnight.
Lorenzo, who finished second ahead of Rossi in the Malaysian race and now trails his rival by seven points with 25 available, said Rossi's punishment was inadequate.
"I don't think it's a good decision," he said.
"He took out Marc, and Marc gets zero points, but he gets 16 points.
"I think it's unfair and maybe because of his name he can get no [worse] decision this time.
"It's unbelievable, I didn't believe it.
"It's not fair in this kind of corner to put the bike so that the other rider [falls].
"But it happened, race direction made the decision and we have to respect it - but I don't agree."
Asked what he thought would be a sufficient penalty for Rossi, Lorenzo replied: "Minimum, Valentino should have the same points as Marc.
"He didn't finish the race and scored zero points, so Valentino should get the same."
Lorenzo also suggested the incident will damage Rossi's global standing.
"Not only me, but a lot of people will lose respect for him as a sportsman," he said.
"He's one of the greatest riders in history but I think a lot of people will change their opinions."
LEADING CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS:
| Pos | Rider | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valentino Rossi | 312 |
| 2 | Jorge Lorenzo | 305 |
| 3 | Marc Marquez | 222 |
| 4 | Dani Pedrosa | 190 |
| 5 | Andrea Iannone | 188 |
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