2023-06-16 17:56:09
In the morning, Johann Zarco set the fastest time at the Sachsenring. But when he went out on the track for the final “time attack” at the end of the second practice session, a sensational accident occurred in the first corner: Marc Márquez fell over the front and his Repsol Honda then shot the Pramac Ducati pilots on the outside line.
Luckily, only the motorcycle sustained major damage. After a few moments of trepidation, Zarco picked himself up and walked towards the pits on his own two feet, where he even jumped onto his second GP23 for a lap following a short break.
“I’m okay,” the 32-year-old then gave the all-clear. I received a hard blow on the buttocks. That’s why I mightn’t move at first, it was a strange feeling. But nothing seems to be broken. I will now check it better with the physiotherapist so that I feel good for tomorrow. Everything is fine so far, we only have one wrecked bike now that the mechanics will be working on late into the night. The chassis was destroyed.”
Marc Márquez explained in his media round regarding the incident: “If anyone might have prevented this situation, it was Johann.”
Zarco firmly countered: “If you want to hear my opinion on all this – yes, we can say that it was some kind of racing accident. This can happen, although it would be better if it hadn’t happened. Exiting the pit lane is a bit tricky, but okay, we’re used to that and we’re trying to be very careful,” he said. “I was also very careful, I waited outside. I came out of the pit lane, braked and then, when I turned in, I saw that a large group was approaching. So I set the bike up. Luckily, when I saw Marc’s bike, I straightened my bike a bit more and he didn’t hit my leg or foot.”
The Frenchman had a clear message for Marc Márquez: «First of all, he might have at least come to me when I was lying on the ground. I understand he wants to run to his second bike to try and do another lap. But because of the red flag, he might have just checked if everything was okay. I like Marc how he rides and pushes – he’s a champion. He loses control a bit now when he talks though. He should think twice before he says anything.”
“Having the idea that it’s my fault is unacceptable. I’m a nice guy, but he can’t blame me,” said the two-time Moto2 World Champion. “Just because I’m a nice guy doesn’t mean you can’t point a finger at me. Another big accident happened three years ago, I was also hit in the rear three years ago – and everyone said it was my fault, »Zarco recalled the horror crash with Franco Morbidelli 2020 in Spielberg.
Back to today’s excitement: “Marc might at least have said: ‘Sorry, everything okay?’ I was able to speak to him briefly, 15 minutes following the session he stopped by and said: ‘Oh, that was a shock.’ Okay, but you can’t say it’s anyone’s fault. It’s not like that.”
“He just loses a bit of control when he talks, and that’s a bit sad,” Zarco added. “He has to control his words a bit. ‘Cause I’m not a fool and he can’t blame me. That’s just ridiculous.”
MotoGP combined times following FP2, Sachsenring (16/6):
1. Bezzecchi, Ducati, 1:20.271 min
2. Martin, Ducati, + 0,040 sec
3. Aleix Espargaró, Aprilia, + 0.081
4. Bagnaia, Ducati, + 0.100
5. Miller, KTM, + 0,149
6. Quartararo, Yamaha, + 0,352
7. Marini, Ducati, + 0.368
8. Bastianini, Ducati, +0.386
9. Alex Márquez, Ducati, + 0,400
10. Zarco, Ducati, +0.431
11. Brad Binder, KTM, + 0,494
12. Di Giannantonio, Ducati, + 0.528
13. Augusto Fernández, KTM, + 0.547
14. Marc Marquez, Honda, +0.583
15. Oliveira, Aprilia, + 0.591
16. Vinales, Aprilia, +0.614
17. Morbidelli, Yamaha, +0.851
18. Nakagami, Honda, +1,010
19. Raul Fernandez, Aprilia, +1,403
20. Folger, KTM, + 2,547
MotoGP result FP2, Sachsenring:
1. Bezzecchi, Ducati, 1:20.271 min
2. Martin, Ducati, + 0,040 sec
3. Aleix Espargaró, Aprilia, + 0.081
4. Bagnaia, Ducati, + 0.100
5. Miller, KTM, + 0,149
6. Quartararo, Yamaha, + 0,352
7. Marini, Ducati, + 0.368
8. Bastianini, Ducati, +0.386
9. Alex Márquez, Ducati, + 0,400
10. Brad Binder, KTM, + 0,494
11. Di Giannantonio, Ducati, + 0.528
12. Augusto Fernández, KTM, + 0.547
13. Oliveira, Aprilia, + 0.591
14. Zarco, Ducati, +0.604
15. Vinales, Aprilia, +0.614
16. Morbidelli, Yamaha, +0.851
17. Raul Fernandez, Aprilia, +1,586
18. Marc Marquez, Honda, +1,870
19. Folger, KTM, + 2,634
20. Nakagami, Honda, +3,679
MotoGP result FP1, Sachsenring:
1. Zarco, Ducati, 1:20,702 mins
2. Marc Marquez, Honda, +0.152
3. Aleix Espargaró, Aprilia, + 0.195
4. Alex Márquez, Ducati, + 0,253
5. Martin, Ducati, +0.330
6. Quartararo, Yamaha, + 0,352
7. Brad Binder, KTM, + 0,397
8. Bagnaia, Ducati, + 0.415
9. Di Giannantonio, Ducati + 0.508
10. Bezzecchi, Ducati, +0.511
11. Nakagami, Honda, +0.579
12. Marini, Ducati, + 0.633
13. Viñales, Aprilia, +0.667
14. Miller, KTM, + 0,696
15. Oliveira, Aprilia, + 0.733
16. Raul Fernandez, Aprilia, +0.972
17. Bastianini, Ducati, +1.028
18. Morbidelli, Yamaha, +1,374
19. Augusto Fernández, KTM, + 1,470
20. Folger, KTM, + 2,116
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