Ducati MotoGP rider Pecco Bagnaia involved in drunken car smash
The Ducati MotoGP rider and race winner Francesco Bagnaia tested over the legal blood alcohol limit after a car crash in Ibiza, Spain.
Ducati MotoGP rider Francesco Bagnaia was involved in a car crash on Monday night in Ibiza, where he failed a breathalyser test.
Bagnaia had been at a party with friends in Ibiza, and left at around 03:00. At a roundabout, he crashed his car into a ditch. When the police arrived, The Ducati MotoGP rider underwent a breathalyser test which, according to the Ibizan outlet Periodico de Ibiza y Formentera, he failed with a score of 0.87.
The legal limit by breathalyser in Spain is 0.5, so the transgression here by Bagnaia was by no means a minor misjudgement.
MotoGP rider Bagnaia issues statement
Bagnaia issued a statement on social media this evening (5 July 2022), which reads as follows:
“Last night I was in Ibiza with my friends for a party during this break from MotoGP. We celebrated and toasted together for my victory at the Dutch GP.
— Pecco Bagnaia (@PeccoBagnaia) July 5, 2022
“As I was leaving the disco at 3am, I was facing a roundabout when I ended up with the front wheels in a ditch without involving other vehicles or people.
“However, the alcohol test carried out by the police found that the blood alcohol level was higher than what is allowed by Spanish law.
“I am sorry for what happened; I am practically a non-drinker, and it was a serious carelessness that should not have happened. I apologise to everyone, and I can assure you that I have learned my lesson. Never get behind the wheel after drinking alcohol. Thank you.”
The punishment Bagnaia will face from the Spanish authorities, and the MotoGP bosses, is as yet unclear, but it is needless to say that the situation is somewhat embarrassing for a rider who, after his Dutch TT (not Dutch GP) win, talked about how he races with “values,” and how winning with values “is more beautiful.”
Top in-text image courtesy of Periodico de Ibiza y Formentera.