A crash between Franco Morbidelli and Joan Mir on the first lap at Portimao – Mir finishes best Honda rider despite damage
There was a collision at the back of the field on the first lap of the Portuguese Grand Prix that was not captured by the TV cameras. Franco Morbidelli (Pramac-Ducati) had started 17th and Joan Mir (Honda) 20th
But the two crossed paths at turn 8. “I overtook on the first lap, but I was in the position. In these positions, you have to keep calm in the first laps,” said Mir, describing the initial phase from his point of view.
“That’s the reality, because it’s a big race and you have a lot of bikes in front of you. You have to be clever, don’t you? Morbidelli wasn’t. He hit me at high speed. That’s why I went off the track in turn 8.”
“That was not good for my race.” The rear of the field was practically not shown during the television broadcast. But photos show that Mir’s Honda had sustained significant damage from the impact.
The entire rear wing was missing. “The rear of the bike, the wing and all these things were gone. My front wing was still there, but it was vibrating and moving a lot,” reports Mir. “The exhaust was also damaged.”
“Without the wing, I had a lot of trouble braking the bike before turn 1. It was also a challenge in turn 5. It’s a shame that no one is filming further back.” Despite the damage, Mir crossed the finish line in twelfth place, making him the best Honda rider.
Morbidelli crashed in the collision. However, the Italian was able to continue and at least collected a few more test kilometers at the end of the field to get to know the Ducati better.
Asked about Mir’s criticism, Morbidelli just shrugs his shoulders: “That’s part of racing. It’s part of racing when you’re in a group. I bumped to the inside and we touched.”
There was no investigation by the FIM race stewards and therefore no sanctions. “Well, he crashed. So he was punished,” says Mir. “Otherwise he would have deserved a penalty, but he crashed. Of course he didn’t want to crash. That was the penalty he received. “
For the next race in the USA, Mir wishes that “this rider far back in the first laps would think more”, because then “it would be safer for everyone”.
