The Sepang 2015 ‘kick’: What do Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez say now?

This weekend’s Malaysian MotoGP is a return to the scene of a notorious chapter in the championship’s history.
Rossi and Marquez, Malaysian MotoGP
Rossi and Marquez, Malaysian MotoGP

Eight years ago, 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Valentino Rossi and 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Marc Marquez clashed in𝓰 a moment so vitriolic th🌠at it still divides fans - and remains a source of antagonism between the great rivals.

Before the Sepang 2015 race, Rossi staggeringly accused Marquez of trying to deny him the title by aiding 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Jorge Lorenzo’s bid.

Days later in the grand prix their infamous ‘collision’ ended with Marquez hitting the deck, and Rossi, who was accused of kicking him down, slapped with a back-of-t🅰he-grid start for the season-finale which ultimately cost him the title.

As MotoGP returns to the scene of the crime, what are Rossi and ﷽Marquez’s🐈 latest thoughts?

Valentino Rossi: “There is a very deep wound, I think about it too much”

Rossi, Valencia MotoGP test. November
Rossi, Valencia MotoGP test. November

“If I think about those last three races from 2015 now, I have exactly the same feeling as when I crossed the finish li👍ne in 2015,” Rossi said on a podcast at the beginning of this year, the most recent time he has p🦹ublicly discussed the incident.

“There is a very d🍌eep wound, I think about it too🍃 much.

“Fortunateꦕly I haꦿve done many other things that make me happy with my career but…

“In Malaysia he bothered me tܫhe whole race. He tried to thr🦄ow me down. Then after the straight we touched.

“He says I kicked him. But I didn’t.

“Anyway, he crashed. After the race I 🐼went [to the stewards] and thought they would start him last - instead they started me♐ last. 

“He ruined a cruc🐻ial race for the world cham💫pionship, the penultimate race of the championship.”

Marc Marquez: “Disrespectful, intimidation”

The Sepang 2015 ‘kick’: What do Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez say now?

The rivalry was 🍷reopened by Marquez’s Amazon Prime documentary earlier this year.

He first mentioned the pre-race press conference in Sepཧang in 2015, when Rossi share⛦d his claims of a conspiracy.

“The Malaysian press conference arrived and instead of taking me aside and speaking hܫe🌟 attacked me publicly, it was disrespectful. I think it was intimidation,” Marquez said.

Tꦺhe documentary captured Rossi saying “bravo” sarcastically, and Marquez saying “beautiful kick” afte𒊎r their incident.

Marquez r🔜eflected on it: “Some peo𓆏ple still say that I threw myself against his bike.

“‘He didn’t kick yꦜou, he only pushed his 🍨foot out a bit!’

“Whatever, he cornered me into the side of the track🔯. Did♍n’t give me any room. And when he looked at me, he poked his foot out.

“It was also a mistake from the race director. If it isn’t Valentino Rossi, it’s a black flag and i✤t’s over.”

The Amazon Prime director of Marquez’s documentary i🦋nsisted that Rossi rejected the chance to have his say.

"We consulted Valentino, but he did not want to partܫicipate,” director Jaime Perez told . 

“We had a documentary by Marc Marquez, but we also talked about eไvents involving Lorenzo or the first years with Pedrosa where he said strong things. 

“W🦂e went to them, we🌠 explained it to them and both, with all their rights, said yes, and Rossi, with all his rights, said no."

Jorge Lorenzo: ‘When you feel strong, you don’t talk about this stuff’

Lorenzo, Rossi, Japanese MotoGP,
Lorenzo, Rossi, Japanese MotoGP,

Lorenzo, Rossi’s rival and his Y🍎amaha teammate, proꦯfited from the incident by winning the 2015 title.

“I think Marquez understood that Valentino did it on📖 purpose,” Lorenzo says of the kick incident in Sepang.

Lorenzo added about Rossi’s feisty press conference: “When you feel strong and you know you’re going to win every race♌? You don’t talk about this kind of stuff.”

Marquez responded: “Lorenzo is right. If you’re fast then nothing bothers🍎 you and you don’t have time for nonsense. 

“If you aren’t fast and you feel inferior, feeling like you’re going to lose, you start lo🔴oking for problems.”

‘He is still angry’

“He hasn't talked about it much with me, but I🐻'm sure he's still angry,” Rossi’s brother Luca Marini, who was 18 at the time but now rides for the VR46 MotoGP team, said.

Aleix Espargaro recently touched on the topic for his social media channel: “I think Marc should have had a little more class, with Valentino playing the world championship, and not hind꧒er him so much in that race in Malaysia. 

"Valentino's actionജ is clear: Valentino takes him off the track and should have been sanctioned in that same grand prix.

“I think everything that happene🌺ﷺd was negative for our sport.”

Read More