Aprilia boss fumes at Marquez penalty: “Five missing? We risk only test riders”
Marquez was slapped with a double long penalty for crashing into Miguel Oliveira on the third lap of the first grand prix - but his punishment has been in chaos ever since.
The initial ruling was that he must serve the double long lap penalty in Argentina, but he missed the race due to injury.
The rule was reworded to ensure Marquez must serve the penalty whenever he returns, but Honda appealed this change.
The MotoGP Court of Appeal have not yet delivered their final ruling on whether Marquez’s penalty is still valid.
"They wrote it badly and now they have to figure out how to fix it," Rivola told Sky.
"It would have been enough to write everything well, but to do it you have to think twice and be good enough.
“Those who make mistakes must be penalised and those who penalise them must be competent and strict, especially with this new race format.
“If there are five riders missing in the third race, we run the risk that only the test drivers will run in the middle of the season."
Marquez hopes to return at next weekend’s Spanish MotoGP if his recovery from hand surgery allows.
But it remains unknown if he will serve a double long lap penalty, if he races.
Marquez and RNF Aprilia rider Oliveira are among a host of injuries already this season, after only three rounds.
Enea Bastianini, Pol Espargaro and Joan Mir have also missed races.
Mir returned in Texas, Bastianini hopes to join Marquez by returning in Jerez next weekend, but Espargaro will be a long-term absentee.
James was a sports journalist at Sky Sports for a decade covering everything from American sports, to football, to F1.
