Again, not diminishing the action and just how dangerous it is/was.
The "outrage" is warranted, but somehow I suspect the top tier fan favorites would not have their licenses in jeopardy, lose their sponsorship or be fired from their team.
Since I am a junkie for MotoGP. Most of the "incidents" that the "top tier" riders have been penalized for are silly little things. Rossi went wide in a corner, Marquez went down. Rossi was moved to the back of the grid on the next race. Cost him the championship.
Fenati is or was a golden boy. He is one of the Rossi Academy guys and he has a penchant for doing this kind of thing. This is not his first firing. He walked out on a team. He pretty much did what he wanted, until now. Now he stepped WAY OVER the line.
If Rossi, Marquez, Dovi, Crutchlow or the like did this it would be just as bad. Note that the official sanctioning body, Dorna, only disqualified him from the race and suspended him for the next two. His team fired him effectively on the spot. Then, MV Augusta who signed him for 2019 fired him since he did not meet the values of the brand. Then yesterday, the Italian Motorcycle Federation (FMI) pulled his racing license.
So, I would point out, the sanctions he received from the International Motorcycle Federation (FIM) were a mere slap on the hand. The folks who spend money on him, oh yeah, and his sponsors kicked him to the curb where he belongs.
So, I am pretty sure any rider grabbing another's brake at 120 mph would immediately be suspended. I was glad the teams stepped up and did the right thing. So, the lesson is there, no matter who you are you can step over the edge and suffer the consequences.
I think this is another symptom of not teaching kids to lose, but rather making everyone the same. Sometimes you are better than the rest, and somtimes they are better than us.
Winning and losing is part of life. Being able to accept either is part of being an adult and a leader. Fenati is a long way off from both. YMMV.
P.S. I will defer to Mitch with regards to the big guys get away with stuff. They do fill the seats and make the money for the sport and sponsors. However if you do something so heinous that you no longer are a viable money maker, they always toss those guys. It is sad that the guy ruined his career. The good news is that he is going to "continue his studies and calm down", wonder what that means.