Pecco Bagnaia “quite in pain” after Alex Marquez Aragon MotoGP crash

Francesco Bagnaia has detailed some of the injuries he’s dealing with after his crash with Alex Marquez at last weekend’s Aragon MotoGP.

The two made contact after Marquez ran wide at turn 12 on lap 18 of the Grand Prix. Bagnaia, who started third but dropped to seventh after a poor launch off the grid, was making his way back through the pack and looked set to take the final step of the podium away from Marquez.

The Italian tried to take advantage of Marquez’s turn 12 error a hundred or so metres later at turn 13, but the contact between the two left them both out of the race.

Bagnaia in particular had an awkward roll underneath the bike of Marquez, and went to the medical centre afterwards.

Speaking to MotoGP.com after the race in Aragon, Bagnaia complained of “pain in my neck,” but added that “it could be much worse, so it’s okay.”

In a statement posted to his Instagram story explaining the crash, Bagnaia also said that he was feeling pain in his left shoulder.

“I took advantage of Alex [Marquez] going wide to get ahead of him and also dove into the next corner with a slightly wider line knowing there was another rider; therefore it’s a shame that it ended up in this way as it had already been a difficult weekend,” Bagnaia’s statement reads.

“After another complicated start — due to the tricky conditions of that spot on the grid — I was putting together a good comeback, and I was a lot quicker. Right now, I’m quite in pain, especially in my left shoulder, but it looks like there’s nothing broken.

“We’ll do our best to be as fit as possible at Misano.”

With the San Marino Grand Prix coming up this weekend, Bagnaia has only four days to recover his fitness before practice begins for his home round; a situation not dissimilar to that in which he found himself last year, when he crashed at the Catalan Grand Prix and arrived at Misano with leg injuries.

Bagnaia finished third in both the Sprint and Grand Prix last year, despite his injuries, but it will not be clear how he is affected by the Aragon crash in Misano until practice gets underway on Friday morning.