Smith suggests reason for Le Mans crashes

Bradley Smith has suggested that a slippier patch of tarmac on the Le Mans circuit was the cause of not only his crash out of Sunday’s MotoGP race, but also of the crashes of Marc Marquez and Andrea Dovizioso

All three riders crashed on a patch of tarmac on the entry to the Musée corner, where a repair to the surface may well have created a new challenge to the riders with a differing level of grip.

“It looks like the patch there was a little slippier there than in other places, like the repair work there was a had a little bit less grip. I had saw quite a few people run wide going in there, and I saw Marc and Dovi crash there – but I got no warning that it was slippier than anywhere else.

“I thought I was well within the safety margins – but obviously not! It goes without saying that it’s a frustrating end to the weekend, especially because it’s clear to see that it was the best weekend that we’ve had so far this year. Nevertheless, I have to remain optimistic because until the race, it was a much better weekend than what we have experienced so far this season.”