Marc Marquez has been sanctioned with two penalty points for ignoring a yellow flag in the morning warm up. The Repsol Honda rider was penalized after crashing at Vale, just moments after Cal Crutchlow had gone down at the same spot. Marquez was penalized as the marshalls at the spot were waving yellow flags, along with the oil flags.
Speaking after the race, Marquez said he had not seen any yellow flags at the corner. 'I didn't speak with [Race Direction] but they said there was the yellow flag and the oil flag, and I know that with the yellow flag you need to slow down, especially when you see the oil flag, you slow down a lot, but I didn't see them. I cannot say many things [about this]. The rules are there, and so if they gave me points, it's because the flags were there, but I didn't see them.'
Below is the official press release on the sanction:
FIM Announcement
Decision of the Race Direction
Notification of Sanction
On 1st September, 2013 during MotoGP™ Warm Up session of the Hertz British Grand Prix, rider Marc Marquez (93) was riding in a section of the circuit where waved yellow flags were displayed due to an earlier accident. He continued at racing speed and did not slow down and be prepared to stop as required by the regulations. His subsequent crash at the same point as the previous accident seriously endangered the rider being attended and the marshals in the accident zone.
This is an infringement of Article 1.22.2 of the FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix Regulations.
A Race Direction hearing was held at Silverstone on 1st September 2013 and the decision of the Race Direction is to impose two penalty points on the 2013 season total of the MotoGP rider number 93 Marc Marquez.
No appeal has been lodged. The decision of the Race Direction is final.
Comments
Insult to Injury...
I really don't think Marc would've been flying along KNOWING that there was oil (flags waving) on the track... that eventually caused him to get hurt in the process!!! I hope Marc comes back stronger than ever for the next rounds and obliterate the entire field! smh.
In reply to Insult to Injury... by ghostrider11
Back of the grid
If he'd gotten penalty points for hitting Lorenzo at Jerez he'd be starting from the back of the Grid at Misano. I'm kind of disappointed he's not, would have been fun to watch!
He won't do that again!
He won't do that again!
Hell !
They should have given him the Victoria Cross for participating in the first place. Oh well. The rules are the rules and I'm sure he was unaware of the situation in the moment. As for the penalty,it would have been better had they dropped him 2 grid spots for the next race in the interests of another spectacle at Misano.
In reply to Hell ! by PIT BULL
The flags are too hard to
The flags are too hard to see. They need a gps linked headphone device telling riders in the danger zone to slow down. Then he would have done so. You cant expect a rider on a hot lap to see flags on the first pass.
I think you can and
I think you can and absolutely should expect professional riders at the peak of their industry to see waved yellow flags. No exceptions. These guys have raced for 10-15 years under the same system of yellow flags waved when an incident has taken place. There are no excuses and in this case, Marquez to his credit, is not asking for any.
Penality points
Come on now. How does anyone expect a rider to spot a yellow flag with a sea of Rossi yellow clad fans in the background. Non stop yellow flags and tee shirts waving in every corner. The Hertz yellow flashing all the way around the track did not help either. Is it realistic for anyone to think that a rider at 200 mph is going to see a single flag being waved 150 yards from the racing surface? Perhaps it's time to revisit the rider warning system DORNA so get up off your butts and make a ruling that really is needed. Create a new rider alert system. Need help? Call me.
In reply to Penality points by whammy
Wasn't the crash at Vale?
If so, then no stands in front - just an almighty gravel trap and a red/white chequered background that would make spotting Cal/his bike/the Marshalls very easy indeed.
I also checked the onboard video on MotoGP.com, and if it was at Vale, there is also no Hertz advertising in view, and from personal experience, the long exit from Stowe gives you a good view and possibility to reposition before entering the Chicane.
Re: visibility at 200mph - speed isn't the issue; time is the issue. Silverstone is an open circuit and the time from Marc's last apex up until the crash was more than sufficient to spot a flag and react, especially in comparison to other feats of quick reactions, such as his incredible save at Woodcote in qualifying.
It is what it is - Marc didn't think he would crash at the speed he was going, and he did.
Tunnel vision
that's it. a person so strongly focusing 100% of his attention on the racing line, has little perception of anything outsinde the race line.Specially when aboard a RCV.
Not that he really need those 2 points anyway.
Well I could bring
up a previous incident involving yellow flags and people claiming not to see them (and in that instance no penalty given) but unfortunately the story also includes a rider who is no longer in the class and I see that Motomatters has decided it was/is "boring" (I think that was the word used) to see that riders name mentioned in the comments. So I won't, which is a pity because if one ignores history then you are usually doomed to repeat it.
Incoming!
In reply to Well I could bring by sir_nj
I'll bite, who are you
I'll bite, who are you referring to?
In reply to Well I could bring by sir_nj
erm...
...
Sir nj: your comment belies your point. How can you doomed to repeat a mistake by not remembering history when, as you say, they have not repeated?
yello13: please don't...(but I'll whisper- he means Stoner but it starts such a sh** storm when he's mentioned because Rossi fans get so upset he was so much more impressive!!)
Sorry David, sorry all.
I don't think the point here
I don't think the point here is that he would have slowed had he seen the flags to avoid injuring himself, the point is he's shown yesterday and in the past that he's ignorant to these things and is and has been a danger to others as a result.
He should have seen the flag, he should have seen the seven odd marshals and Crutchlow in the gravel trap. He put all their lives in danger for being ignorant. And in a Warm Up!
He's been extremely lucky to not be more harshly sanctioned in the past for very dangerous riding practices. Or to even gather points for some questionable riding this year. I think he needs a wake up call or good talking to from someone he respects for it to sink in to his head.
awareness
In all honesty - it's become pretty clear over thelast few years that Marquez doesn't notice too much else when in race mode. Just ask Ratthapark Wilairot, Pol Espargaro.
In reply to awareness by pooch
Spot on
My thoughts exactly!
But they all race under the same rules, so no excuses are going to cut it for missing a marshall's flag.
Wow, I haven't seen...
... a penalty quite like that before, but watching footage of the incident I can absolutely see the need for such a punishment so that it's taken very seriously by the riders. The sight of a banged-up rider and corner workers running for cover as several hundred pounds of metal is hurtling at them was scary to say the least. Could've been a really bad incident. Kudos to the FIM workers for reacting so quickly and getting out of harms way.
Wait a sec...
To those that are not just sympathetic to Marquez but are actually saying he should not be penalised, I will assume you have never attended a riders brief nor volunteered to be a Marshall. Their job is to assist the riders where possible, and to ensure that the race is as safe as possible by ensuring that obstructions are removed from runoff areas and the track itself. They do this by putting themselves in harms' way and the last thing they need is another bike careening into the trap that they are trying to clear. If a Marshall did not get out of the way in time despite the yellow flag, Marquez might have found himself with a much sterner penalty than two points.
I think the sanction is fair
But nevertheless, those 2 points will not prevent MM93 from being the champion this year
Hero marshal
Speaking to Cal's trainer last night about the incident, he told me that one of the marshals was looking up track and saw Marquez heading for them. He shouted a warning and all jumped out of the way narrowly avoiding what would have been a horrible incident. I would love to know this guys name, he deserves the points Marquez lost! :-)
Incidentally, Marquez's mistake cost tech3 a pile of money as Cal's bike was not too bad after his crash but marquez's bike pulverised it... What's 2 points worth in real money?
Penalty Points vs Championship Points. And Flags.
Some people seem to be confused about the relationship between championship points and penalty points. Penalty points are not subtracted from championship points. Márquez has not lost 2 points from his championship total. Penalty points are added in another column of the spreadsheet, with the various penalties enforced when the appropriate level is reached.
As for Márquez missing the flags, that's more troubling to me. I'm not a professional racer, or even a club racer. I didn't even stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night, but I am an occasional trackday guy. If you can't see the freaking waving yellow flags while you're riding then you are a safety hazard to everyone around you. Tunnel vision is not an acceptable excuse if you injure someone. Yellow flags, banners, t-shirts, etc that are way the heck up in the stands are not an acceptable (or even believable) excuse. Even if Dorna were to implement a simple system of flashing lights on the dashboard the flags should still be used. If I can see them from my couch while watching fairly low resolution video over the internet then there's virtually no excuse for a rider on the track to miss one, short of another rider blocking his line of sight to the flag.
In reply to Penalty Points vs Championship Points. And Flags. by Granchango
Agreed...
I agree. I've ridden at Silverstone multiple times, and not had any issues with seeing the flags. The marshalling positions are intentionally located in good, clear to view areas, usually in almost direct line of sight.
No excuses, and to be fair to Marc, he hasn't made any - just a mistake that he has been punished for in accordance with the rules.
+1 Granchango and Andy_ 748
Marc is no spring chicken. He knows the beat of yellow flags. Perhaps the dislocated collarbone is just another box ticked as a reminder. Probably. The bloke learns very quick and doesn't complain when he gets cuts for his indiscretions. 'Cuts' being a form of corporal punishment in my school days.
Why have Dorna...
...not yet implemented the warning light system? It comes up every now and then and it seems it would be just about the easiest thing to implement at negligible cost.
Whether Marco did not see the flags (which I'm inclined to believe- oil is not something with which one can argue) or whether he ignored them, penalty points are a bit pointless. Rather than punish, seek to improve.
I fear it will take a terrible incident for a genuine help to be implemented (then seen to be doing something). It seems such an oversight I fear I must be missing something, some reason why it is not entirely desirable?
What gives?
My understanding was that negative remarks with regard to Marquez were not tolerated on this forum.
This guy has a clear disregard for those around him. Why he gets a pass and Simoncelli was castigated at every turn I will never understand.
Safety
It was terrible to see MM bike flying towards Crutchlow and the Marshals. This kind of incident should not happen. I think that safety and other rules in MotoGP (and WSBK for that matter) should be more clear and strict.
As donadthegonad said, there is no reason why Simoncelli was getting some penalties while MM is not. Same thing for Bautista, which is always called to race direction. In F1 there are very clear rules, specially when it comes to the safety of Marshals, pilots and spectators. I find it incredible that under yellow flags MotoGP riders are still posting their fastest times. An incident like this was bound to happen. The rule should be, yellow flags you slow down or you get a proper penalty, not some "license" points.
In reply to Safety by gunbalina
Good comments...
There are some good points here, in particular with reference to F1. In F1, if somebody is deemed not to have slowed sufficiently then they (as far as I remember) can be instantly punished e.g. with a grid place penalty.
Not that I want MotoGP to become the legal farce that F1 is, but in such instances they even go as far as to inspect the driver data and prove whether or not the driver lifted the throttle (how much is enough of course, is still a subjective assessment I'd imagine).
The rules in MotoGP appear to be "do what you like under yellows, just don't crash or overtake".