Jack Miller triggers a chain reaction at the Mandalika start, bringing down three riders – Why was there no penalty, unlike a crash in Moto2?
For four MotoGP riders, the Indonesian Grand Prix was over after just three corners. The bikes of Jack Miller (KTM), Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia), Luca Marini (Honda) and Alex Marquez (Gresini-Ducati) were in the gravel trap.
Miller was the cause of this chain reaction. “After Turn 1, I was side by side with Aleix going into Turn 2. I was trying to maintain my speed for Turn 3,” the Australian said, describing how he saw the situation unfolding.
“At the change of direction for turn 3, Maverick took a narrow line to cut off whoever was on the outside. My focus was on the battle with Aleix coming out of turn 2. As we entered turn 3, I saw how close I was to Vinales.”
“When I pulled the front brake, the front wheel collapsed. It was all very close. Typical for the first lap. The reason for the crash was that I didn’t want to hit anyone. I didn’t feel like I was over the limit.”
“Vinales took a tighter line than I expected, so I had to brake to avoid contact. When I braked, the front wheel went into a dive.” His bike then took the other three riders with it into the gravel.
A chaotic first lap with a big melee @alexmarquez73, @AleixEspargaro, @jackmilleraus and @Luca_Marini_97 are the riders involved IndonesianGP pic.twitter.com/NxgGyZm1Ky
— MotoGP™ (@MotoGP) September 29, 2024
“I couldn’t see anything,” Marini reports, “because I was behind Brad Binder. When I changed direction, there were suddenly three motorcycles and three drivers. It was impossible to avoid them. I didn’t see anything. It was bad luck.”
Alex Marquez also describes it this way: “There’s not much to say. A motorcycle hit me from behind. I think it was Miller’s KTM. Maybe he was too optimistic, but these things happen. Everyone wants to make up places quickly. There’s nothing more to say.”
Penalty in Moto2, but none in MotoGP
The FIM race commissioners opened an investigation. They concluded that it was a racing incident. There were no sanctions for Miller. “I agree that’s fair. I admit I did it wrong,” says the KTM rider.
“I made the mistake. I was the first rider to go down. I want to apologize to the other guys because that was not my intention. It was a racing situation. I was also trying to manage a million different things at the same time.”
Before that, in the Moto2 race, there was a penalty for a crash at Turn 1. Zonta van den Goorbergh had pushed Jaume Masia and caused the Spaniard to crash. Van den Goorbergh received two long-lap penalties for this because it was an “aggressive” maneuver.
This is what happened to @jaume_masia at the start
Zonta vd Goorbergh has been given a double long lap penalty ⚠️IndonesianGP pic.twitter.com/ sGbSkv89O6
— MotoGP™ (@MotoGP) September 29, 2024
Did the stewards apply double standards? “It’s always difficult,“ says Espargaro. ‘In Moto2, they gave Zonta a penalty because Masia crashed. Why was there a penalty there and not for us?’
”I don’t want to blame Jack, because it can happen. It’s the first round. He obviously took a huge risk. From the helicopter, you can see that he was completely off the line. But it’s racing and it can happen.”
Since overtaking has become very difficult in the normal course of the race, the starting phase is an opportunity to make up positions. Especially further back in the field. “That’s what it’s like when you start 16th,” sighs Miller. “There’s chaos back there.”
“You only have a chance to overtake in the first few laps. Because when everyone has their rhythm, it’s very difficult to make a difference. You could see that with ‘Pecco’, ‘Franky’ and ‘Bez’ too. It was super difficult for everyone in that group to do anything.”