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MotoGP
MOTOGP: Noyes’ Notebook: Anatomy Of An Overtaking, Pt. III
More expert opinions, including those of Marco Simoncelli's peers, are voiced in this final installment of Dennis Noyes' investigation of 'The Pass.'
The late Marco Simoncelli (Photo: Getty Images)
The Simoncelli Case: Final Arguments
On Friday at the Safety Committee meeting at the Grand Prix of Catalunya, Marco Simoncelli will finally be able to give his side of the overtaking that resulted in Dani Pedrosa’s crash and his own penalization with a ride through sanction that dropped him from a certain second to a fighting fifth that he managed to salvage by passing both Nicky Hayden and Ben Spies over the last three laps.
This is what Simoncelli, feeling victimized and singled out before the incident said, as reported by SPEED.com's Colin Young: “I am sorry for Dani's crash and his injuries, but I'd like to give my point of view. He passed me back on the straight and I was not expecting to pass him around the outside but I was much deeper on the brakes and carrying more speed on the way in so I tried to run around the top, leaving him a meter so he could get into the corner as well. But he had a problem with his braking and he went in with the rear wheel hopping and went deeper. I tried to pick it up, but I couldn’t. As far as the penalty, I think I was penalized because of the controversy in Portugal. If it had been any other rider, they wouldn’t have done anything. At the next Safety Commission meeting I hope to explain what happened. I don’t think I did anything wrong, but he made a mistake on his braking.”
Mamola's Take
Four-times 500cc runner-up Randy Mamola, one of the legends of the Golden Days of 500s, tends to look beyond the immediate conflicts to their causes. Here is his insightful overview of the current paddock environment:
Randy Mamola: “Sure, Marco had Dani but he was too impatient. We can see that, but remember this kid’s euphoria -- he had just run off and left (Jorge) Lorenzo and he was all over Dani and this would have been his first MotoGP podium. Easy to say what he should have done, but easy to understand how he must have been feeling. And remember, passing wasn’t going to be that easy with Dani and his Honda 44 pounds lighter that Marco and his.
What everybody wants to talk about is the pass and the crash, and I understand. I thought it was a hard move, but I wouldn’t have given Marco a penalty. I think we are having a bigger problem than that crash. The tension between the riders has reached a point where they are taking their case to the press and that is taking the attention away from the racing.
Casey (Stoner) is angry if anybody follows him on track and we saw him boil over in the warm-up when Randy De Puniet pulled over in front of him. Jorge is under growing pressure because the Hondas are getting away and he is worried about his title. You can see it in his eyes. (Valentino) Rossi is under pressure because he can’t get the Ducati to work for him and he’s getting heat from the fans and the Italian press. And all the guys at the front are getting pressure from the new guy, Simoncelli. Lots of pressure, and what Race Direction needs to do is hold obligatory riders meetings at every race and get these guys talking to each other. They only see each other at press conferences and on the track. Race Control needs to take control. A racing incident like the one with Dani and Marco needs to be looked at, investigated, with all the angles and the data downloaded from both bikes. One thing Lorenzo said that I really agree with: 'This it not a game and some people are treating it like a game.' (Editor’s note: Jorge said this at the famous press conference when a funny remark by Simoncelli… "So arrest me!”… had all the press laughing.)
"In Formula 1 they have drivers meetings and things get said, face-to-face, without journalists and TV cameras. We need that escape valve. I have proposed this to Dorna and discussed it with riders. Riders say they don’t want to meetings and Dorna believes the Safety meeting is enough and is open to everyone, but I think you need a real meeting that is obligatory, not one that is open and voluntary. In F1 the drivers would rather go back to the hotel, but Race Direction obliges them to be there and they can be penalized by losing points for missing a meeting or even just being late. What we are doing now doesn't work. F1 drivers tell me that usually the meetings are short, but when there is an issue it gets dealt with -- but not in some press conference with only three riders present. There is a reason that they call it Race Control in F1. Our series needs to get on top of this.”
On Friday at the Safety Committee meeting at the Grand Prix of Catalunya, Marco Simoncelli will finally be able to give his side of the overtaking that resulted in Dani Pedrosa’s crash and his own penalization with a ride through sanction that dropped him from a certain second to a fighting fifth that he managed to salvage by passing both Nicky Hayden and Ben Spies over the last three laps.
This is what Simoncelli, feeling victimized and singled out before the incident said, as reported by SPEED.com's Colin Young: “I am sorry for Dani's crash and his injuries, but I'd like to give my point of view. He passed me back on the straight and I was not expecting to pass him around the outside but I was much deeper on the brakes and carrying more speed on the way in so I tried to run around the top, leaving him a meter so he could get into the corner as well. But he had a problem with his braking and he went in with the rear wheel hopping and went deeper. I tried to pick it up, but I couldn’t. As far as the penalty, I think I was penalized because of the controversy in Portugal. If it had been any other rider, they wouldn’t have done anything. At the next Safety Commission meeting I hope to explain what happened. I don’t think I did anything wrong, but he made a mistake on his braking.”
Mamola's Take
Four-times 500cc runner-up Randy Mamola, one of the legends of the Golden Days of 500s, tends to look beyond the immediate conflicts to their causes. Here is his insightful overview of the current paddock environment:
Randy Mamola: “Sure, Marco had Dani but he was too impatient. We can see that, but remember this kid’s euphoria -- he had just run off and left (Jorge) Lorenzo and he was all over Dani and this would have been his first MotoGP podium. Easy to say what he should have done, but easy to understand how he must have been feeling. And remember, passing wasn’t going to be that easy with Dani and his Honda 44 pounds lighter that Marco and his.
What everybody wants to talk about is the pass and the crash, and I understand. I thought it was a hard move, but I wouldn’t have given Marco a penalty. I think we are having a bigger problem than that crash. The tension between the riders has reached a point where they are taking their case to the press and that is taking the attention away from the racing.
Casey (Stoner) is angry if anybody follows him on track and we saw him boil over in the warm-up when Randy De Puniet pulled over in front of him. Jorge is under growing pressure because the Hondas are getting away and he is worried about his title. You can see it in his eyes. (Valentino) Rossi is under pressure because he can’t get the Ducati to work for him and he’s getting heat from the fans and the Italian press. And all the guys at the front are getting pressure from the new guy, Simoncelli. Lots of pressure, and what Race Direction needs to do is hold obligatory riders meetings at every race and get these guys talking to each other. They only see each other at press conferences and on the track. Race Control needs to take control. A racing incident like the one with Dani and Marco needs to be looked at, investigated, with all the angles and the data downloaded from both bikes. One thing Lorenzo said that I really agree with: 'This it not a game and some people are treating it like a game.' (Editor’s note: Jorge said this at the famous press conference when a funny remark by Simoncelli… "So arrest me!”… had all the press laughing.)
"In Formula 1 they have drivers meetings and things get said, face-to-face, without journalists and TV cameras. We need that escape valve. I have proposed this to Dorna and discussed it with riders. Riders say they don’t want to meetings and Dorna believes the Safety meeting is enough and is open to everyone, but I think you need a real meeting that is obligatory, not one that is open and voluntary. In F1 the drivers would rather go back to the hotel, but Race Direction obliges them to be there and they can be penalized by losing points for missing a meeting or even just being late. What we are doing now doesn't work. F1 drivers tell me that usually the meetings are short, but when there is an issue it gets dealt with -- but not in some press conference with only three riders present. There is a reason that they call it Race Control in F1. Our series needs to get on top of this.”
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