MotoGP: Extraordinary meeting called to discuss Rossi vs. Marquez with riders and teams at Valencia
MOTOGP bosses have called an extraordinary meeting as they try to control the rapidly escalating reaction to Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez’s clash.
MOTOGP bosses have called an extraordinary meeting with the riders and teams at Valencia as they try to control the rapidly escalating reaction to the clash between Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez in Malaysia.
The standard pre-race media press conference on the Thursday of the season finale, which was scheduled to include Rossi, Marquez and title contender Jorge Lorenzo, has been cancelled.
Instead, all MotoGP riders and team manager have been summoned to a meeting of MotoGP’s Permanent Bureau on Thursday afternoon local time.
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The Permanent Bureau consists of the two most powerful figures in the management of the sport: Vito Ippolito, president of motorcycle racing’s governing body, the FIM; and Carmelo Ezpeleta, the CEO of Dorna Sports, the owners of the MotoGP world championship.
The topic of discussion? From the incident between Rossi and Marquez, to the conduct of the teams and riders throughout the weekend of the season-deciding race, and everything in between.
The Spanish and Italian press have gone nuclear with the topic in the eight days following the incident, ranging from the balanced to the downright bizarre.
Lorenzo was accused by an Italian publication of meeting with Marquez and forming a pact to ensure the Spaniard is crowned world champion, forcing Lorenzo’s media team to issue an official response firmly denying any such thing had taken place.
The ugliest incident involved reporters from an Italian comedy show, Le Iene, showing up on Marquez’s doorstep in Cervera to perform a skit where they say they tried to present the two-time MotoGP world champion with the “’Cup of S***,’ A special prize designed to celebrate his deeds,” said a post on the show’s Facebook page.
Marquez’s people claim they “made humiliating actions towards the rider himself and even pushed and assaulted his closest relatives”; the social media post from the show suggests that it was the reporters who were attacked, with members of the Marquez family breaking the camera and taking the video card.
“They must have wanted a bigger cup,” the post added.
A petition demanding Rossi’s penalty be dropped has now ticked over 700,000 signatures, while Italian football fans brandished a banner encouraging Rossi to ride “without rules ... tibia and fibula!” during a Serie A game.
Rossi himself is appealing his penalty to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, asking for the penalty he was handed by MotoGP race direction to be annulled, reduced, or at least suspended pending the hearing of his appeal.
If he is successful in achieving the latter, it means he would be free to start the Valencia race from wherever he qualified instead of at the rear of the field. Last year, Rossi qualified on pole for the race.
The CAS will hand down their decision on Rossi’s request for a stay of execution on the Friday of Valencia.
THE FULL STATEMENT FROM MOTOGP
Following the events that occurred at the Malaysian Grand Prix and further developments over the following week and given the exceptional circumstances, the Permanent Bureau of the FIM MotoGP™ World Championship, comprising of Messrs Vito Ippolito, FIM President, and Carmelo Ezpeleta, Chief Executive Officer of Dorna Sports, will summon all MotoGP™ riders and their respective team managers to address the situation on Thursday 5th November at 15.30 Local Time.
Given these circumstances, the pre-event press conference scheduled at 17.00 will be cancelled.
Originally published as MotoGP: Extraordinary meeting called to discuss Rossi vs. Marquez with riders and teams at Valencia