Morbidelli criticizes impeding penalty: “This rule should be idiot-proof”

– Franco Morbidelli had to serve a long-lap penalty at the MotoGP home race in Misano, and it was not the first time this season. The VR46 rider was penalized for impeding Enea Bastianini during practice.

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Morbidelli basically accepts that impeding is penalized, but he considers the current rule wrong in certain situations, especially when an incident happens at the beginning of a session and the affected rider still has enough time and tires available to improve.

“I am dumber than the other riders. In such situations, I am less clever. But when it comes to safety, this rule should be idiot-proof,” Morbidelli explained after the sprint, summarizing his criticism of the current regulation.

The Italian had impeded Bastianini in the first minutes of the practice for the San Marino Grand Prix in Misano. For this, he received a long-lap penalty, which he had to serve during the Grand Prix on Sunday. Especially bitter for Morbidelli, as this put him at a significant disadvantage at his home race.

“Ah … The race tomorrow is over. With a long-lap penalty and the kind of performance I have in the long race … I don’t know if I will make it into the points,” the VR46 rider predicted in advance. In the end, thanks to several retirements, he managed 13th place and two world championship points.

Morbidelli calls for aids for riders

On his Instagram page, Morbidelli once again explained his point of view in detail. Under a photo of Mario Balotelli wearing a T-shirt with the inscription “Why Always Me?”, the Italian writes: “I know it is unfortunate, and I know many people will hate me for it …”

“But I can assure you that it is never my intention to be dangerous or to impede anyone. I would really like to get rid of this recurring situation, and let’s be honest: it happens because I am not clever enough in those moments when you have to slow down.”

Morbidelli also emphasizes that he has already requested support from the organization. Possible aids he mentions include blue flags, dashboard notifications, and radio messages. “They are working on it intensively.”

The VR46 rider sees a fundamental problem here: On the one hand, a rider must leave the ideal line in time when a faster competitor approaches. On the other hand, the situation on a MotoGP bike is not always easy to assess safely.

“So it is dangerous to leave the line too late. Okay. But it is not dangerous to look around when you are leaned over by 50 degrees or more and riding at 250 km/h, or to brake too hard and risk the tires getting too cold and possibly crashing hard because of it.”

Morbidelli makes it clear that he does not want to deny his responsibility: “I will continue to give everything to improve myself in every way! Including impeding.”

Rule is problematic for Morbidelli

Basically, the Italian does not question the penalty either. What is decisive for him is rather when an impeding happens and what actual consequences it has for the other rider. For the last minutes of practice and qualifying, he considers a consistent penalty understandable.

“I fully agree with that: If the performance is impaired, it is right. The rider has this one chance to set his time, the tire is ruined by now, and he can no longer improve.”

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Morbidelli sees the situation differently at the beginning of a session. If a rider unintentionally impedes a competitor in the first minutes, the latter still has many opportunities to compensate for the lost time. This is exactly where he sees a crucial difference.

Photo gallery: The career highlights of Franco Morbidelli

“I have never seen contacts during a session or someone fully hitting another rider, except in moments when the tension eases, such as at the end of a session or a race. You see those moments. But during the session, you hardly ever see that.”

“Because the rider behind sees where the rider in front is going. And the rider in front tries to move away. Always,” emphasizes the 2020 vice world champion.

F1 as an example for better information

As a comparison, Morbidelli cites Formula 1. There, drivers are very detailedly informed via radio during slow laps in qualifying about which competitors are approaching and how far away they are. “When they do these laps, they know very precisely which drivers are coming and how far away they are.”

From Morbidelli’s point of view, the Formula 1 colleagues actually have it much easier: “They have rearview mirrors and drive on four wheels. We, on the other hand, ride on two wheels, have no rearview mirrors, but constantly have to turn around quickly to be ready to leave the ideal line when someone comes.”

For Morbidelli, avoiding is basically a matter of course. The difficulty lies in simultaneously keeping track of one’s own position, the surroundings, and the approaching motorcycles during a fast lap.

“I completely agree that you get out of the way when someone comes. I also see that this is very difficult – for me it is very difficult – because you have to turn around, ride fast, and other motorcycles are coming. You have to control many things at the same time,” says the Italian.

Therefore, he considers additional warnings useful. “A message on the dashboard, a radio message, the blue flags … All of this could solve this annoying problem.”

“Is it an offense? Yes. But …”

Morbidelli is particularly bothered by the fact that impeding does not necessarily have a lasting impact on the other rider’s performance, but the consequences for the offender who is penalized can still be significant.

“It is simply annoying to show a certain performance and lose positions on the starting grid or get a long-lap penalty in the race because of something that ultimately does not affect the other rider’s performance. Is it an offense? Yes. But …”, he points out.

This is exactly where his fundamental criticism begins. Morbidelli does not deny that “impeding” can be a rule violation. Rather, he questions whether a safety rule should be designed to apply even in situations where a rider’s mistake actually causes no harm.

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