VIDEO: Dangerous accident in MotoGP! Eight-time champion Marc Márquez knocks down Miguel Oliveira this hard

The MotoGP royal cubature has just completed the opening round of this season, namely the Portuguese Grand Prix. Like Saturday’s sprint, it was dominated by reigning World Champion Francesco Bagnaia. However, the race at the Portimao circuit was not completed by eight-time champion Marc Márquez, who took down Miguel Oliveira.

Marc Márquez started the Portuguese Grand Prix from pole position but dropped to fourth after the first few corners. It should be noted, the optimistic manoeuvre into turn three after the start didn’t look very controlled.

The Spaniard attempted something similar on lap three, only this time the whole situation resulted in a nasty looking accident. You can see the whole situation for yourself in the video below. A really hard and dangerous crash.

Márquez hit the rear wheel of Jorge Martin’s (Pramac Racing – ed.) bike and crashed at high speed into the unfortunate Miguel Oliveira, who had lost the lead a lap earlier thanks to Bagnai.

The crowd favourite was out of the game and the very experienced driver was immediately met with a huge cheer from the spectators present.

Márquez’s post-race crash was also punished by the race directors, who handed the 30-year-old Cervera native a double long lap penalty.

Márquez is being punished in yet another way as a result of this hard crash. Indeed, according to the latest information, the Honda Repsol rider suffered a fracture of the first metacarpal bone and will miss the second race of the season – the Argentine Grand Prix.

I’m sorry, I deserve the penalty

However, in a post-race interview, Márquez apologised to the Portuguese rider and his team. But he also explained the situation.

“I braked and my front tyre locked up massively. My intention was to go to the left side. But the bike stayed in the lean and I couldn’t avoid what followed,” Márquez explained in a post-race interview.

“I’ve already said it in person – but I want to apologize to him, to his team, to the Portuguese fans. For this mistake I was punished with a double long lap. I totally agree with that, I deserve the penalty,” admits the Honda rider.

The opening MotoGP event of the season, the Portuguese Grand Prix, was quite comfortably dominated by reigning World Champion Francesco Bagnaia. The Ducati rider was joined on the podium by Maverick Viñales and Marco Bezzecchi.

Source: MotoGP