Rossi Slams Marquez, Says He Embarrassed MotoGP In Valencia

Valentino Rossi has vented his frustration at missing out on the 2015 MotoGP title in Valencia, slamming Marc Marquez for "protecting" newly-crowned champion Jorge Lorenzo throughout the 30-lap race.

The Italian started from the back of the grid after his clash with Marquez in Malaysia, while Lorenzo took pole position. Rossi made it up to fourth by the chequered flag but Lorenzo won, taking this year’s crown by five points.

Speaking to media after the race, Rossi said Marquez purposely stayed behind Lorenzo and failed to attempt a move, "embarrassing" MotoGP and tarnishing the season.

He said:

"I think this championship had the potential to become one of the best of the last years because the battle with Jorge could go to the last point of the last race. But unfortunately in the last three races something changed, something happened that nobody expected.

"That is that Marc Marquez decided to protect Lorenzo and help him win the championship. The problem started at Phillip Island and the situation became worse and worse. When I knew on Thursday that I had to start last, I knew already that my championship was finished because I knew Marquez would want to finish his work and protect Lorenzo in the last race.

"It happened exactly as I expected. The race was quite embarrassing. The last lap was, I think, quite bad for all the sport. I was ready to lose the championship to Jorge, who is always very fast, on the track. But in this way it’s not fair."

Marquez said he had been attempting to pass Lorenzo but yellow flags and a battle with Honda team-mate Dani Pedrosa prevented him from doing so, which Rossi didn’t believe. He added:

"If you check the races of Marc Marquez in the last two years, you’ll know that he always tries to overtake and at the minimum he’d try to overtake on the last lap. So the first question is why Marc Marquez never tried to overtake Jorge Lorenzo and never tried to make one attempt on the last lap."

"The situation became very embarrassing for Pedrosa. He was far behind and in the last two or three laps recovered two seconds. It means that was the pace of Jorge, and Marc Marquez just waited. It is clear that he helped Jorge. For me the position of Honda is very hard to understand. I don’t know how a manufacturer can agree that one of its riders makes Yamaha win and only tries to fight with his team-mate. Sincerely, I don’t understand."

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