Although there was no shortage of drama in France’s MotoGP on Sunday, Enea Bastianini’s race was at the top of the list of individual mayhem.
With the checkered flag, the Tech3 KTM rider offered four long lap penalties, crashing twice, and completing a bike change. He then scored an even longer lap penalty in the next round at Silverstone.
“Crazy Race!” Bastianini said.
It all came to Bastianini switching to Dryoike at the end of the restart sighting lap, triggering a double long penalty, switching to his Dryoike and joining the other 12 riders.
Enea Bastianini describes the eventful French Motogp
“There was a lot going on today, but the weather is constantly changing. It was raining for a minute and it stopped,” he explained.
“We started warm-up laps with slick tires and it rained, so we changed our bikes and then changed again (with sighting laps).”
However, when the lights go off and the field is charged to Dunlop Chicane – combining tire choices and device settings on a damp truck – Bastianini collides too late, colliding with former Ducati teammate Francesco Bagnaia, leaving both on the ground.
“The situation was difficult for anyone to manage… We crashed first. Unfortunately we defeated Pecco.
“I went back to the race and crashed again…and then we were a little lucky because it started raining and I could change the bike because my first one was completely destroyed.”
Bastianini’s luck didn’t last as he received two more long laps in the pit lane for speeding.
“The guys in the garage didn’t put up the pit lane limiter and I started very quickly, two more long laps arrived.
“In the end, I finished 13th (lap down).
“Today we tried our best, and we may have had a better strategy from the start, but our pace has gotten stronger once the chaos was over, and it’s like this!”
Teammate Maverick Vinall crossed the line fifth, just behind Pedro Acosta’s factory KTM.
Blood Binder crashed from third place early in the Grand Prix.