Marc Marquez and Johann Zarco have given their thoughts on their massive MotoGP Australian Grand Prix collision, with both chalking it up as a racing incident.
Marquez and Zarco were fighting in the lead group in the opening stages of the Phillip Island race when the latter picked up a tow from the Honda rider and Pramac's Jack Miller on the run into the fast right-hander Turn 1 of Doohan corner.
The Honda man moved left out of Miller's slipstream and into the path of Zarco, who collided with the rear of Marquez's RC213V and was flown onto his back, where he slid unharmed along the grass.
Zarco admits he could have braked a little earlier, but felt the situation was “complicated”, and says he is “really happy” to have escaped injury.
“The body is ok, a little bit of pain on the left but I'm ok,” Zarco told motogp.com during its race coverage.
“I got a good last corner exit, so I went next to Marc, then he got the slipstream of Jack. He went on the side of Jack, and then I got the slipstream of Jack.
“So I arrive very fast for the first corner and Marquez didn't want to overtake him, so he brake not too far and he went a little bit on the left side, I was just there.
“So I could not slow down even more, and maybe I should brake earlier but it was a bit complicated.
“So I touch his rear wheel and I totally fly away. So was very high speed crash, I'm really happy, I stay on my back when I was sliding on the grass and in this way I could save my body.”
Marquez suffered heavy damage to the rear of his Honda and was forced to retire for the first time this season. Admitting he feels “very lucky” after the crash, he says he will not “complain” to Zarco as he saw it as a racing incident.
“Yeah, just I feel very lucky because I was really close to having a highside,” he said.
“I mean, for me I will not complain to Johann because, for me, it was a racing incident. In that speed in the end of the straight you feel the slipstream a lot, and maybe he take the slipstream from me, from Jack and was so difficult to stop the bike.
“But the most important thing in this case is both riders are ok, luckily I already did the championship last week but looks like again one more time in Phillip Island [I score] zero points, but was not my mistake. Happy again that both of us are ok.”
