Jorge Martin apologises after shoving Aprilia team manager Paolo Bonora

Jorge Martin apologized to Aprilia and team manager Paolo Bonora on Sunday after television cameras captured him shoving Bonora in the garage at the end of the Catalan Grand Prix. The Aprilia rider had returned to the pits angry after crashing from second place on the opening lap of the race’s final restart following contact with Raul Fernandez, another Aprilia-contracted rider racing for Trackhouse. Martin said afterward that he regretted the push and had tried to find Bonora to apologize in person. The incident came at the end of a chaotic race day in Barcelona that included two red flags and heavy crashes for Alex Marquez and Johann Zarco. ### How did the confrontation in the Aprilia garage happen? Crash.net reported that Martin parked his RS-GP outside the factory Aprilia garage, applauded sarcastically and then entered the pit box, where Bonora and Aprilia Racing CEO Massimo Rivola tried to calm him down. TV footage then showed Martin making contact with Bonora in the garage after the race. (crash.net) The Race reported that the shove came after Martin finished outside the points on a day when he had looked capable of taking the championship lead from teammate Marco Bezzecchi. The outlet said tempers flared when Martin returned to the pits after the final restart incident with Fernandez ended his chance of scoring. ### What exactly did Martin say in his apology? (crash.net) Martin told MotoGP.com, as quoted by Crash.net, that he was “really disappointed” with how he entered the box and said he had pushed Bonora. He called the move “completely unnecessary” and said he had gone looking for Bonora in his office to apologize. (the-race.com) The Race quoted Martin saying: “This is something I want to apologise for - the first thing, to the team and to Bonora.” He added that he was frustrated by the situation, that his emotions rose again when he arrived in the garage, and that he would try to improve. ### What set Martin off on track? Raul Fernandez made contact with Martin on the opening lap of the final restart, according to Crash.net and MotoGP.com’s race report. (crash.net) Martin crashed from second place, remounted and continued, but he was left at the back of the field and did not recover to the points. (the-race.com) The FIM MotoGP stewards took no further action over the Fernandez-Martin collision, Crash.net reported. The Race said it was understood the stewards believed Martin had not yielded enough to what they initially judged a valid overtaking attempt. ### Why was the Catalan race already under scrutiny? (crash.net) MotoGP.com said Fabio Di Giannantonio won a “dramatic” Catalan Grand Prix after a race interrupted by two red flags. The official report said Martin and Pedro Acosta crashed in the 13-lap restart and sent best wishes to Alex Marquez and Johann Zarco after separate red-flag incidents. (crash.net) Martin told MotoGP.com, as quoted by The Race, that his own story was “completely secondary” to the crashes involving Alex Marquez and Zarco. He also said MotoGP “needs to improve” how it handles days with repeated restarts and suggested that three starts might be too many. ### What does Aprilia face next after Barcelona? (motogp.com) Marco Bezzecchi remained central to Aprilia’s title fight leaving Barcelona, with Crash.net reporting Martin had arrived at the race trailing his teammate by two points before the setback. The same report said Bezzecchi finished fifth, limiting the damage for Aprilia in the standings. (crash.net) Sunday’s next developments are likely to come from MotoGP, Aprilia and the relevant teams on any medical updates for Alex Marquez and Johann Zarco, and from the championship standings after post-race penalties were processed in Barcelona. (motogp.com) (crash.net)