Jorge Martin feels Enea Bastianini’s move for the lead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix was a “bit too much” as he “pushed me off” the track.
Pramac rider Martin was leading the Misano MotoGP race on the final lap until Bastianini dove past him at Turn 4, forcing him to sit up and run wide over the asphalt run-off in one of the most controversial moments of the season.
After gesturing furiously at Bastiainini while rejoining the track, the Spaniard backed off and subsequently crossed the finish line five seconds down in second, as he missed out on a first victory since the French Grand Prix in May.
The stewards took no action against any rider for their clash, declaring the results of the race soon after the chequered flag.
While Martin apologised for the way he showed his frustration, he was adamant that the factory Ducati rider had overstepped his boundaries and the pass he made to win at Misano was unfair.
“I think the manoeuvre maybe was a bit too much because he pushed me out of the track and I couldn't fight back,” he said.
“Afterwards I did some gestures because I was a bit hot, but anyway. I think I was the strongest, I deserved the victory, but it's okay. I will try again [in the] next one.
“I think there was no room to make that maneovure. There is not a lot of sense to keep talking about it because it won't change anything.
“But for sure I think I deserved that victory. [If] he made a move, at least do it clean and don't touch me.”
Speaking later with TV broadcaster DAZN, he added: ”Obviously Enea deserves the win, he was there until the end. But after leading so many laps and being thrown off the track, it's not what I expected. But that's the way it is. There's not much to comment.
“I'm not really happy with Enea's overtake, but it is what it is. But I didn't like the way I reacted. My reaction was unnecessary and I apologise for my gesture in the heat of the moment. But I still don't think the overtake was fair.
"It doesn't matter what I say. I'm going to get criticised from all angles."
While the overtake itself sparked debate, the fact that Bastianini himself ran wide at the exit of the corner as he looked over to Martin also generated a fair bit of controversy.
This was also a source of frustration for Martin, who pointed to a lack of clarity from race direction about the rules for racing in MotoGP.
“I exited quite good from corner three,” he said. “I closed the line so no one could go into this line. So for sure if he was in, I [had to] pick up the bike and we even touched.
“If he would stay on the track, [then] okay I went wide [and] that's okay. But he was outside.
“We speak sometimes in race direction but it's not always clear and it's not always constant.”
