During the fourth free practice of the German Grand Prix, Jack Miller went down on the Sachsenring track seconds after Aprilia rider Aleix Espargaró did.
However, despite getting up on his own two feet without consequences, the Ducati rider had to deal with one more problem. In accordance with the regulations of the championship, the Australian has received a penalty for going to the ground with the yellow flag waving after the previous fall of a pilot.
Although no one was at the scene of the accident when the stewards concluded their work following the Espargaró incident, Miller was placed under investigation due to the risk of the situation.
Typically, this type of offense carries a grid penalty, but on this occasion, Miller has only received a long lap penalty, which he will serve during tomorrow’s race.
“This is considered irresponsible driving causing danger to other competitors and is in breach of article 1.21.2 of the FIM World Championship Grand Prix Regulations. For the above reasons, the FIM MotoGP Stewards Panel has imposed a long lap penalty for the MotoGP race of the Liqui Moly Motorrad Grand Prix of Germany.
Faced with this situation, the Ducati rider assured that he saw the yellow flags, and that his goal was far from improving his lap and taking advantage of the situation. “I saw the yellow flags, I literally said to myself in my helmet ‘don’t fall'”, defended the Australian.
“And next thing I know, I was on the ground. I understood, of course, that there was no one in the gravel, but there was still a yellow flag. Of course, I understand. But I’m going to go make my case and say ‘Look, I wasn’t trying to improve, it shows in the sectors based on the data’, the Ducati rider concluded.
