What happened in MotoGP’s other big Thailand sprint incident

While the late-race collision between Marc Marquez and Pedro Acosta was the main talking point at Buriram, another clash at the beginning fell under the radar

Fabio Di Giannantonio believes stricter stewarding is needed to improve safety at MotoGP race starts after his opening-lap incident with Alex Marquez in the Thailand Grand Prix sprint.

Di Giannantonio and Marquez were battling for fourth position heading into the opening turn at Buriram, with the Gresini rider diving to the inside following a strong launch from seventh on the grid.

Running very close to Raul Fernandez’s Trackhouse Aprilia that was running in third, Marquez almost sat up and ran off the track, taking di Giannantonio with him.

Both riders were shuffled outside the top 10 as their rivals accelerated out of the hairpin, wrecking any chance of a podium finish. Di Giannantonio recovered to finish eighth, but Marquez failed to even break inside the points.

Speaking after the race, the VR46 rider warned that the situation could have escalated into a big crash, as he called for harsher penalties for incidents in the opening laps.

Fabio Di Giannantonio, VR46 Racing Team

Photo by: Mirco Lazzari GP / Getty Images

“I think that the first two corners, the first hard braking after the start, is the most dangerous situation that we experience every time,” he said. “I believe every rider on track, they are scared of that moment. If one rider says that it's not like this, they are lying 100%. So, we experience a lot of unfortunate crashes and mistakes through the years.

“[Marco] Bezzzechi Barcelona, [Takaaki] Nakagami Barcelona, Jorge Martin Japan. Many mistakes. Then it's not just this. A lot of mistakes in the first corner. If we don't respect each other enough, the race direction should help us with much, much stronger penalties on the first two corners, to help us to be more in control and more cautious.

“Today I think we've been lucky. Because we avoided a potential huge crash between me, Alex and Raul. If it was happening in a chicane, that maybe we were joining the track crashing.

“I went to race control already. I explained my point of view to improve the safety of all the riders, to give much bigger penalties. They agree with me that this can be a solution for the near future and the future.

“So, I want to be safe in the first corners. I want to be confident that the rider in front of me is respecting me. And in case it's not, we need to learn from us, we need to learn, we need to teach the young classes also.

“It's been a pity on my side [for that incident] to have ruined the race, but then it's much more important that we improve this for the really near future.”

Alex Marquez, Gresini Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / LAT Images / via Getty Images

Last year’s runner-up Marquez defended his actions at the start, given the positioning of Fernandez ahead and di Giannantonio alongside him.

“It was a really good start and was quite able to be in a good position, in parallel with Diggia. Then we started to brake at a pretty similar point, but Raul was in front and Diggia started to go in, just not watching me.

“Then I have a moment that I had, with Diggia closing the line and Raul in front. Then I say ‘ok, if I go more on the brakes, I will lock the front and I will crash all three’ Or if, I release I will go wide a little bit and then come back.

“So, nothing more to do, nothing more my option, I think trying to defend a position from the outside is not the most interesting thing in the first corner.”

When Marquez’s explanation was put to him, di Giannantonio responded with a light-hearted analogy.

“I want to make a joke, but it's important that if you write, you put this as a joke,” he said. “If you arrive at a traffic light with a car, and you have a car in front of you, you brake If not, you bang the car.

“So, not talking about today, but if you see a rider in front of you, you should brake earlier to not smash into the rider in front. Generally, not talking about today.”