Before heading to Sepang for the first official tests of the pre-season, some MotoGP riders met in Portimao at the beginning of the week to spend two days on the asphalt astride the production-derived bikes. It was a relaxed test session, outside the rigid framework of the championship, but one which risked going badly when Franco Morbidelli suffered a bad fall on Tuesday afternoon.
It soon became known that the Márquez brothers played a fundamental role in the first moments after the accident, although the facts have not yet been described by the main protagonists. Attending a press conference in Jakarta on Saturday, the Gresini Racing team riders did not shy away from the question. Marc Márquez said more about what happened on the sloping section of track between Turn 8, an uphill right-hander, and Turn 9, a downhill left-hander, named after Craig Jones.
“Álex and I helped Franco. Of course we are rivals, but also colleagues. We were doing tests in Portimao. We saw a red flag and were the first to arrive on the scene, between turns 8 and 9. We saw that Franco was completely unconscious in the escape route. He was in a rather strange position, with his head facing upwards,” explained Marc Márquez, indicating with a gesture that the Italian driver was on his back with his head backwards.
Alex Marquez, Gresini Racing, Marc Marquez, Gresini Racing
Photo by: Gresini Racing
“Álex and I stopped immediately, we left the bikes on the ground and we ran to Franco to put him in a lateral position, because when you are unconscious and look up it's dangerous, because you can't breathe well. So we put him in the position side, we opened his suit and the visor of his helmet and waited for the medical personnel. When the medical teams arrived, we simply returned to the garage. We are opponents but also colleagues and we want the best for all our opponents.”
When the emergency services arrived on the scene, they took control and Franco Morbidelli was transported by ambulance to the medical center. This was enough to keep him in hospital, under the watchful eye of doctors, after he suffered a serious blow to the head and a small blood clot was discovered during an initial CT scan.
Morbidelli remained under observation until a second CT scan allowed him to leave the hospital, but he was able to return home after two days, thanking everyone who helped him. “Thank you all for the messages,” he wrote on social networks. “Thanks to the help of the marshalls I managed to get out of that big accident without any problems! And thanks also to Marc Marquez for his help on the track! Thanks friend!”.
Franco Morbidelli is expected in Sepang for testing starting on Tuesday, which means a long journey for him. He will have to undergo another check-up this weekend in Italy to get the all-clear from doctors.
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