MotoGp, Paolo Simoncelli on Martin's crash: "Grateful for what didn't happen"

Bologna, 21 April 2025 – Just a scare, fortunately, even if Jorge Martin will have a long rehabilitation process. The world champion's fall in Losail brought back bad memories for Paolo Simoncelli, Marco's father, with Fabio DiGiannantonio unable to avoid the body of the Spaniard who had just been thrown from his Aprilia. At 180 km/h the Ducati VR46 Pertamina hit Martin on the side, causing him eleven rib fractures and a pneumothorax. It could have been much worse. Paolo Simoncelli he had his say after the Losail race, not only breathing a sigh of relief for how it went, but also trying to provide useful advice to avoid other possible misfortunes.  

Simoncelli: “Grateful for what didn’t happen. We need gravel”

It is necessary to reflect on certain high-speed falls, especially in areas where there is asphalt beyond the curb, which often gives riders the opportunity to take more risks than necessary. The penalties are minimal, but the risks are maximum, because a small jolt on the curb is enough to end up on the ground with all the other bikes passing behind. Martin suffered his third serious injury of the year, but risked worse consequences. Paolo's thoughts Simoncelli: “We are grateful not for what happened but for what did not happen,” he said, as reported by motorsport.com. “Martin came out of it almost unscathed after falling and then being hit. Let’s say he was caught ten centimetres away from the point of no return. Thank God, it could have been much worse.” Having escaped the danger, it is now essential to find a solution. The asphalt run-off areas give drivers the opportunity to take even greater risks, and there are increasingly lighter rims to improve performance: “The rims are light, they get damaged, they bend and this is a cost for the teams,” is the thought of Simoncelli. Marco's father even went further and a solution could be the gravel on the edge of the track again: "The riders have no rules, outside the curve there is no more gravel and it becomes the festival of off-track - Simoncelli's criticism - With asphalt everything changes, because those who dare don't pay much and those who go long get back on the track without problems". For Paolo there is also a problem of sanctions. Too lenient for those who repeatedly go outside the margins: "We reward risk and penalize precision. We need a clear rule. One could be a one-second penalty for those who go out, or we go back to the good old gravel. When you made a mistake you paid a price". Martin did 'well', but in the future it could go worse for someone else. In the meantime, from Friday to Sunday the fifth round of the world championship from Jerez de la Frontera for the Spanish GP. Read also - Pit Beirer (KTM): "We will try to make Pedro Acosta feel at ease"