Francesco Bagnaia shared his feelings about an incident when Maverick Viñales approached him at high speed during the start of free practice in Barcelona.

Bagnaia was riding slowly on the main straight when, as he eased off, Viñales rode past him on the outside at almost racing speed. This led Bagnaia to lock the front wheel of his bike, causing him to fall at Turn 1. Although he scuffed his leathers in the incident, Bagnaia walked away uninjured.

The crash was highly unusual, as the session had officially ended, with riders practicing race starts for the sprint and main race.

Reflecting on the incident, Bagnaia acknowledged that he had slowed down more than he should have but was taken by surprise when Viñales chose to pass him on the outside rather than the inside.

“I missed the start because my rear tyre spun, and we’re on the limit with the engine, so I didn’t want to push,” Bagnaia explained. “My mistake was slowing down too much, but honestly, when you’re arriving that fast, you go inside—it was full of space there.

“I heard him coming and thought he’d take the inside line. But then I saw him arriving at normal speed on the outside, on the kerb, with the bike moving, and I got scared. That’s when I lost the front.”

Bagnaia also pointed out that the bike’s handling, with the tyres he was using, requires smooth directional changes—something he failed to execute in that moment.

Viñales said that he gave Bagnaia plenty of space as he passed him into Turn 1, suggesting that Bagnaia’s reaction and braking caused the crash.

“Practice starts are for practicing starts. You get to the first corner and try to disengage by braking late,” Viñales said. “Pecco was very slow, in the middle. I tried to avoid him and went outside, leaving two bikes’ worth of space. I didn’t even pass that close.”

After reviewing the crash, Viñales added: “At first, I thought maybe I’d caused it, but when I saw the replay, there was plenty of room. I think he just got scared, grabbed the front brake, and locked the tyre. It was crazy.”