Espargaro: Petrucci hit me harder than Marquez

Aleix Espargaro was the first rider to be barged by Marc Marquez, during a chaotic Argentina MotoGP race for the reigning champion.

The Repsol Honda star, who was fighting back through the field after a ride-through penalty for refusing to leave the grid after stalling and then restarting his RCV, turfed the Aprilia rider out of 18th place at the penultimate Turn 13.

That same corner would be the scene of an even more dramatic incident late in the race, when Marquez slammed into Valentino Rossi, who then fell on the wet grass.

Asked about the incident with Marquez, Espargaro revealed he had been hit even harder by Danilo Petrucci and felt the Italian should also have been penalised.

"He [Marquez] hit me very, very hard. But Petrucci did exactly the same to me, in Turn 2. The same or even harder.

"So the IRTA people need to pay attention because it's not fair that Marc has been penalised but not Petrucci, who hit me harder.

"It's a race contact, he [Marquez] has to be careful obviously because he cannot be that in the limit, but this is racing."

Marquez, who crossed the finish line in fifth place, received a 30-second post-race penalty for the incident with Rossi, leaving him 18th.

Espargaro retired due to a technical problem.