Styrian MotoGP red-flagged after fiery crash

On lap three of the 27-lap Red Bull Ring race, KTM wildcard Pedrosa lost the front-end of his RC16 at the Turn 3 right-hander while he was running in 12th.

The Spaniard’s stricken KTM was in left stranded on the racing line and Aprilia’s Savadori could do nothing to avoid it.

Savadori struck the KTM and the bike burst into flames, which spread across the circuit at Turn 3, immediately bringing out the red flags.

Pedrosa got up quickly from his tumble while Savadori was seen getting away from the incident, though needed to be taken away on a stretcher.

Thankfully, Savadori was seen sitting up by the side of the track and speaking to medical staff.

MotoGP has since confirmed Savadori has been taken to the medical centre for further checks, while Pedrosa will be allowed to restart the race on his spare bike.

The circuit at Turn 3 is currently undergoing a major clean-up operation with the pitlane set to open at 14:38 local time ahead of a 27-lap race restart.

Fire after a crash at turn 2

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

At the red flag it was Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia who led the field from Pramac poleman Jorge Martin.

The opening laps were frantic, with championship leader Fabio Quartararo on the Yamaha putting on a brave move on Joan Mir and Marc Marquez at Turn 6 for fourth.

This came as both reigning champion Mir and Marquez made contact at the corner, with the Suzuki rider put into that position when he ran wide at Turn 4 while running in the podium places.

The race will be restarted over 26 laps and the grid order will be as it was for the original start, with Martin on pole from Bagnaia and Quartararo.

This is the third Red Bull Ring MotoGP race in succession to be red-flagged following serious incidents.

The 2020 Austrian GP was red-flagged after a horrifying collision between Franco Morbidelli and Johann Zarco, which saw both of their bikes almost hit Maverick Vinales and Valentino Rossi.

In the Styrian GP the week after, a brake failure for Maverick Vinales at Turn 1 forced him to jump off at 140mph and resulted in his Yamaha smashing into the air fence and bursting into flames.

Red Bull Ring safety has been a constant topic for discussion in recent years, with riders particularly concerned if races are to be hit by rain – which remains a threat this afternoon.