“It stayed at 60% throttle until we crashed!”

Aragon was the scene of an eventful weekend, from the return of the king to the controversial clash between Alex Marquez and Pecco Bagnaia. The on-track action got fans around the world talking and voicing their own opinions, but the drivers at the heart of the action also had their say. Here are the main talking points and hottest headlines from the Aragon Grand Prix.

“I HEARD HIS ENGINE OPEN THE THROTTLE”

World champion Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) was furious after his collision with Alex Marquez at MotorLand Aragon. With six laps to go, the pair battled for the final podium spot before making contact at Turn 13. The Italian insisted Marquez was to blame for the incident, stressing that the Spaniard’s data showed he did not crash at any point during the incident.

“I was in front, completely. Even before I changed direction. So what makes me most angry is looking at the data. Because as soon as I entered Turn 10, I was in front, leaving space, because I knew he was there, but I was with a lot more speed. So I didn’t need to close the line to be in front.

“As soon as I did it, as soon as I went into Turn 10, I heard his engine open the throttle, open the throttle. That’s bad. And then what’s even worse is the fact that he stayed at 40 to 60 percent throttle until he crashed.

“So it’s very dangerous to have someone who does this kind of thing, because normally you try to avoid any contact. You don’t want to have any contact with anyone. And based on the data, based on what’s happened, nobody has that idea.”

“I haven’t seen it”

Gresini Racing’s Alex Marquez, however, strongly disputed Bagnaia’s opinion, saying he was blind and unaware he was fighting the world champion.

“Pecco decided to make that move from the outside. He was very brave and very clear to do it. But he knew I was there. So, I mean, give me at least one meter. If anyone can avoid contact, it’s him. He knew I was there. I didn’t see him at any time. I didn’t expect contact.”

“WE NEED TO GIVE A LITTLE MORE SPACE”

Aprilia Racing’s Aleix Espargaro also gave his opinion on the incident, believing Bagnaia could have done a little more to avoid contact between the two.

“It’s an accident that we’ve seen many times in MotoGP, especially recently. But for me, when you come from the outside like Pecco did, you have to give the rider on the inside more space. Alex can’t disappear. He can cut the throttle, but why does he have to do that? It’s racing. So if you want to avoid the accident, you have to give a little more space.”

“IT’S ALEX’S FAULT. HE CAUSED IT”

Aprilia’s Trackhouse Racing rider Miguel Oliveira has a slightly different take on the incident. The Portuguese rider is convinced that Marquez is at fault.

“It’s Alex’s fault. He provoked it. That’s the way I look at it. It’s a strange situation because he went too far, he knew Pecco was taking the outside line. So he ended up going into the corner, but he went halfway behind him. And he just leaned against him. He could have cut the throttle, but it happened too fast. He got stuck on his bike and that’s it.”

“I KNOW IT AT THE VALENCIA TEST”

Despite more than 1,000 days of racing, Marc Marquez wasn’t too worried about waiting to get back on the top step of the podium. The eight-time world champion revealed after just one day on the bike that he knew he would have a chance of victory in 2024.

“At “I understood that I was going to get there. I understood that we would have our chances. One thing is to fight for the championship. For that, we have to keep working. But in Valencia I began to understand that sooner or later I would get there. That’s why I was calm and didn’t let myself go too much.”