• Welcome to the Two Wheeled Texans community! Feel free to hang out and lurk as long as you like. However, we would like to encourage you to register so that you can join the community and use the numerous features on the site. After registering, don't forget to post up an introduction!

Road Rage at San Marino GP

Joined
Apr 26, 2006
Messages
6,277
Reaction score
2,055
Location
Seabrook, TX
First Name
Dave
this has been picked up by general media...
http://www.foxnews.com/auto/2018/09...red-after-grabbing-competitors-handbrake.html

"Italian motorcycle racer Romano Fenati has been banned for two races and kicked off his team for good after grabbing competitor Stefano Manzi’s handbrake during a race, putting him in grave danger."

I've heard stories of riders reaching over and flipping their buddie's engine-cutoff during a leisurely ride, but this is far from that at 130mph.
 
Caught this a few days ago following the racing news. Fenati is know for this kind of behavior, although this is far and away his more dangerous stunt. Hope he gets help and doesn't find another ride until he does.
 
His sponsorship has already been pulled. He won't be racing anytime soon.

In a bit a good news for Fenati - he's already been hired as a Mafia hit man.
 
I agree with Crutchlow. Banned for life.

That was just off the chart crazy and there is no excuse for it.

On a positive note, this provides a GREAT example for my kids of how losing your cool in the heat of the moment can lead you to do something that can alter the course of your life forever, and there will be no "taking it back" once you regret it.
 
I agree with Crutchlow. Banned for life.

That was just off the chart crazy and there is no excuse for it.

On a positive note, this provides a GREAT example for my kids of how losing your cool in the heat of the moment can lead you to do something that can alter the course of your life forever, and there will be no "taking it back" once you regret it.

+1. Great example of how rage (and other emotions) can motivate you to do things that destroy your ability to achieve your long-term goals.

Glad he's gone, wish they'd revoke his racing license. You don't play with other racers' lives on the track.
 
I've seen this in several kinds of racing. Didn't one of the Busch brothers get banned from NASCAR for a year, for on-track road rage?

Last season or the the F1 season before, Sebastian Vettel lost his temper at Lewis Hamilton during a full-course caution, and deliberately rammed the back of Hamilton's Mercedes. Fragile as those cars are, it was amazing that neither had enough damage to affect the race. But more amazing to me was that there was no follow-up and no penalty.

Really, how can we enforce a no-tolerance position about road rage on public roads if professional drivers are seen getting away with it, and evidently being paid for it?
 
I would bet that this action is more common than one might guess.
My fear is that Fenati is being made and example of.

Had Rossi or Marquez done it, it would have been more of a look at those guys' antics, carry on, nothing to see here.

I'm not diminishing the gravity, just how politics in racing really works.

Even at the level I raced, two guys stuffing a fender in on a car had two completely different outcomes ... for the guy with the #1 on his windshield it was a bold racing move. For me, it was a stupid thing to do without regard for my fellow racer.
 
He gets my award for idiot of the week. Man what if he would have caused the other rider to go down. Foolish emotions made him do something ignorant. Who knows the accident might have caused him to crash also.

His next job he might say something like this. "Would you like fries with that?"
 
I would bet that this action is more common than one might guess.
My fear is that Fenati is being made and example of. ....
Respectfully disagree, in regard to FIM racing and this specific action of grabbing (or attempting to grab) a front brake lever.

IMHO that's another order of magnitude (or two) beyond any other sort of close-racing contact. IMHO if any rider thought they were on the receiving-end of that specific action they'd raise heck with the officials and the allegation would likely be vetted thoroughly.

IMHO the demonstrated flaw in Mr. Fenati's case is the possession of a mindset that is capable of contemplating that specific act, even if only in a moment of red-haze in competition.

Whether he pleads momentary absolute loss of judgment or uncontrollable impulse (and what else could he plead? the muscle/motor actions required are unquestionably deliberate), neither has any place on the track, and both belie an underlying 'instinct' that's likely very difficult to eradicate.

And yes, IMHO, a very significant example should be made of that specific action in this specific sport.

Whether FIM decides to yank his license for life remains to be seen .... The FIM summons Moto2 Rider Romano Fenati to FIM HQ
 
Last edited:
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.
 
The thing is that the top tier racers don't have to resort to this kind of behavior. Sure, they race hard, sometimes doing a block pass which causes the other racer to check up or even leave the track. And even these kinds of racing incidents are usually reviewed and result in penalties.

Payback has a way of working out on the track just as it does in baseball, and nobody in the top tier is going to risk their championship run with this kind of behavior. Too much to lose.

I wouldn't want to be in Fenati's shoes when his mother gets hold of him ... mama mia!

Dave.
 
I think he should be penalized and in time out for the 2019 season. Then if he can get another ride let him come back on probation in 2020 season. This would be enough consequences for his bad actions. I bet he will never do it again. Marquez and Rossi both have had some unsafe behavior on track, even if it wasn't to this degree. They have both been penalized. Rossi still won't shake Mark's hand :kiss:
Maybe the family god father can get him back on the track :).
 
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.
 
Last edited:
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.

Well, it happens in all sports. Brady or Manning could throw an "incomplete pass" that would be intentional grounding for any 2nd year QB.

And I see it all the time in F1 racing. The Vettels and the Hamiltons get away with things that the Verstappens the Grosjeans draw timing penalties for.

Since I don't follow moto-GP, I have no idea how good this guy is. If he's good, somebody will pick him up. People aren't kept out of field sports simply because they're thugs. Why would they be kept of out moto-GP simply for assault?
 
He gets my award for idiot of the week. Man what if he would have caused the other rider to go down. Foolish emotions made him do something ignorant. Who knows the accident might have caused him to crash also.

His next job he might say something like this. "Would you like fries with that?"
I might vote for Idiot of the month...
What if he caused the other rider to go down, and several others behind him?
This could have become a much bigger thing very quickly.
I have seen this kind of lack of control in a lot of younger folks, especially in recent years, it's really disturbing to me.
It shows a complete lack of ability to foresee consequences.
He may have mad skills as a racer but he has the dumb.
 
Pro racing is no longer a gentlemen's sport and I think you purists are hanging on to that really tight.

In a world where a racing team's budget is multi-million dollars, a single motorcycle approaches 100K, the sport is now run by the sponsors.

Rossi draws people which feeds the sponsor monster. He is going no where.
Fenati doesn't, so he was thrown to the lions and now the team and sponsor can have 15 minutes of look at me.
 
The MotoGP bikes are north of $2M I believe. Fenati was a hot property. They hired him to Moto2 team even though he already got fired for acting the axe if you will. He was a Rossi VR academy product. he was on a fast track to a MotoGP ride, he had some seriously good high paying sponsors. I like to believe if Rossi, Marquez or the like did the same thing they too would be walking out with the door hitting them in the back.
 
.... So, I would point out, the sanctions he received from the International Motorcycle Federation (FIM) were a mere slap on the hand. ....
Please correct me, I haven't seen where FIM has yet issued any sanction or officially ruled on the incident? Only notice that he's been called to FIM HQ for 'discussion' (link to RRW article in post 10 above).

Yes, Dorna, FMI (Italy), his Team, his future team, have all spoken / 'ruled' on their respective behalves, but AFAIK FIM's ruling is still 'pending'?

No illusions about anything 'gentlemanly' about pro racing any more than any other pro sport. It's a high-dollar enterprise for all involved .... riders, owners, venues, sanctioning bodies, media, sponsors, etc, etc .... all exemplars of the most competitive Type-A personalities and organizations, all motivated by all sorts of incentives other than 'gentlemanliness'.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top