Lorenzo livid with Pol Espargaro: “A miracle I didn’t crash”

Early race leader Lorenzo had been overtaken by title rivals Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez in the opening exchanges, and was in third place when Espargaro – who rides for the satellite Tech 3 team but has a factory contract – lunged into him at Village corner.

“I wasn’t really into the corner, and I saw a black and green bike entering very fast,” said Lorenzo. “I had to pick up the bike, we touched, and I didn’t crash by a miracle.

“I’m really upset with his action, because in a race you have a lot of time, it’s very long, so there’s a lot of chance to overtake. For me, he took too many risks while also knowing that I’m playing for the world title and I’m his teammate in the factory, no?”

Espargaro, who dropped to ninth after going off on to the grass, would later crash out.

Lorenzo lost further places, dropping to sixth at one point, but regained two thanks to Marc Marquez falling off, and also passing his Repsol Honda teammate Dani Pedrosa.

He then encountered a misted-up helmet in the closing laps to compound his frustration.

“I’m very upset, but I didn’t lose the concentration,” added Lorenzo. “I was catching Andrea [Dovizioso, who finished third on his Ducati] at the end but with four or five laps to go, I lost vision in the helmet.”

Lorenzo’s fourth place, coupled with Valentino Rossi’s victory, means he’s fallen 12 points behind in the title race.