Fabio Quartararo was left feeling "sore and burned" after crashing out of the Aragon Grand Prix – not helped by a second collision involving a scooter.
The MotoGP championship leader hit the rear of Marc Marquez on the exit of turn five on the opening lap in Sunday's action-packed race and slid along the asphalt.
Quartararo, who now has just one podium finish in his past five races, later revealed he was involved in another accident as he made his way to the Yamaha garage.
"After the crash a marshal hit the scooter. I had a second crash. It was quite fast actually," he told reporters. "Luckily I hadn't taken off my helmet.
"But the marshal just hit face to face with another scooter, quite fast. I didn't have any damage from that crash. Everything I have [injury-wise] is from the first crash.
"I'm feeling sore and burned. It's a shame because it's the first time I've felt good in Aragon in many years and crashing in the third corner was not the best."
Stuttering Quartararo's lead over Francesco Bagnaia now stands at just 10 points with five races of a gripping season left to go.
That gap could have been reduced to five points, but Bagnaia was overtaken by Enea Bastianini on turn seven of the final lap as his four-race winning streak came to an end.
"Our race was good; I did my best," Bagnaia said. "Enea did an incredible job. He was very competitive throughout the weekend and I knew he and Fabio were the fastest.
"Fabio unfortunately crashed on the first lap, but in any case I just tried to do my best.
"On the last lap I felt that I wasn't able to overtake Enea again, because I was already taking too many risks in the previous laps. So the 20 points are important."
Gresini rider Bastianini avenged his slim loss at the San Marino Grand Prix two weeks ago by finishing 0.042 seconds ahead of Bagnaia for his fourth victory of the season.
Bastianini, who started third on the grid, said: "It's almost like a dream. I made some mistakes during the race.
"But in the end I ended up approaching [Bagnaia] and on the last lap I had the opportunity to attack, and I managed to win."
Aleix Espargaro held off Jack Miller and Brad Binder to complete the podium, but fellow home favourite Marquez failed to finish in his first competitive race since May.
Marquez also ended Takaaki Nakagami's race and apologised to both the Japanese and Quartararo after the race.
"I lost the rear in turn three and Fabio made contact. When I engaged the holeshot device later in the lap, the bike locked and moved to the left," he said.
"I think that was because there was a piece of Fabio's bike in the rear. It was really unlucky and I want to apologise to both Taka and Fabio."
Susie Wolff denies report she shared confidential details with her husband
F1 Academy managing director Susie Wolff has rejected allegations that she and her husband, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, have shared confidential information.
A report in Business F1 magazine said there is concern among other Formula One team principals that Toto Wolff has had access to information, via his wife, which is not being shared with them that he is using to his benefit.
In her role at the all-female F1 academy, to which she was appointed in March, Susie Wolff reports directly to F1 president and chief executive Stefano Domenicali.
The FIA announced on Tuesday that its compliance department was “looking in to the matter”.
Susie Wolff said in a post on social media: “I am deeply insulted but sadly unsurprised by the public allegations that have been made this evening.
“It is disheartening that my integrity is being called into question in such a manner, especially when it seems to be rooted in intimidatory and misogynistic behaviour, and focused on my marital status rather than my abilities.
“Throughout my career in motorsport, I have encountered and overcome numerous obstacles and I refuse to let these baseless allegations overshadow my dedication and passion for F1 Academy.”
She continued: “As a woman in this sport, I have faced my fair share of challenges but my commitment to breaking down barriers and paving the way for future generations to succeed remains unwavering.
“In the strongest possible terms, I reject these allegations.”
The FIA’s statement said: “The FIA is aware of media speculation centred on the allegation of information of a confidential nature being passed to an F1 team principal from a member of FOM (Formula One Management) personnel. The FIA compliance department is looking in to the matter.”
Mercedes released a statement which said it “wholly rejected” what had been alleged.
“We note the generic statement from the FIA this evening, which responds to unsubstantiated allegations from a single media outlet, and the off-record briefing which has linked it to the team principal of Mercedes-AMG F1,” it said.
“The team has received no communication from the FIA compliance department on this topic and it was highly surprising to learn of the investigation through a media statement.
“We wholly reject the allegation in the statement and associated media coverage, which wrongly impinges on the integrity and compliance of our team principal.
“As a matter of course, we invite full, prompt, and transparent correspondence from the FIA compliance department regarding this investigation and its contents.”
A statement from Formula One said: “We note the public statement made by the FIA this evening that was not shared with us in advance.
“We have complete confidence that the allegations are wrong, and we have robust processes and procedures that ensure the segregation of information and responsibilities in the event of any potential conflict of interest.
“We are confident that no member of our team has made any unauthorised disclosure to a team principal and would caution anyone against making imprudent and serious allegations without substance.”
Formula One confirms six sprint locations for 2024 season
Formula One will again hold six sprint weekends in 2024 with discussions ongoing about potential tweaks to the format.
The sprint weekends will be at the returning Chinese Grand Prix followed by races in Miami, Austria, Austin, Brazil and Qatar.
A number of drivers and team principals, including Red Bull boss Christian Horner, have called for changes to the sprint format.
It is likely that qualifying for the sprint will return to being held on Friday ahead of the sprint race on Saturday, which will be followed by qualifying for Sunday’s grand prix.
Other options may be considered to shake up the format, with changes to rules over parc ferme conditions – where alterations to the car are prohibited – and even a move to reverse part of the grid order for the sprint among possible options.
F1 bosses are keen to retain the sprint and believe having meaningful action on Friday, Saturday and Sunday of a grand prix weekend bring benefits for TV audiences and fans in attendance.
Stefano Domenicali, president and CEO of Formula One, said: “I am delighted to announce six exciting venues for next season’s F1 sprint events, including two new hosts China and Miami, both of which will be fantastic additions and provide great racing for all our fans at the race and watching at home.
“Since its creation in 2021, the sprint has been consistent in delivering increased audiences on TV, more on track entertainment for the fans at events and increased fan engagement on social and digital platforms, and we are looking forward to the exciting events next year.”
A decision on how the sprint format will look next season is likely to be made in January.
Speaking in November, Horner said: “I think it’s clear that the sprint needs to evolve a bit. I can understand the concept and it being action on all three days, which for the promoter and for the fans has an interest.
“But I think the sprints in some cases have been slightly underwhelming – there’s no pit stop, it tends to stay in grid order and it’s a little bit like getting a medal for a long run.
“I think there can be a little bit more racing introduced, but then you’ve got to look at the consequences of that, if you were to reverse the grid, if there were points involved etc, etc.”
On this day in 2016: Nico Rosberg retires from F1
Formula One’s newly crowned world champion Nico Rosberg announced his retirement from the sport on this day in 2016.
Mercedes driver Rosberg had claimed his maiden title at the season-deciding race in Abu Dhabi just five days earlier – and then made the shock revelation at a press conference in Vienna ahead of the FIA’s official prize-giving awards ceremony.
The German, 31, confirmed he took the final decision to walk away from the sport in the hours after his championship triumph.
Rosberg began his grand prix career with Williams in 2006 and competed in more than 200 races.
He joined Mercedes in 2010 and partnered compatriot Michael Schumacher, the seven-time champion, before Lewis Hamilton, his long-term rival, joined the team from McLaren in 2013.
Hamilton beat Rosberg to the drivers’ championship in both 2014 and 2015, with the German finally ending his long-running losing streak by claiming the 2016 title at the Yas Marina Circuit.
Following his shock revelation, Rosberg later posted a message on Facebook giving more details behind the decision.
“Since 25 years in racing, it has been my dream, my ‘one thing’ to become Formula One World Champion,” he said.
“Through the hard work, the pain, the sacrifices, this has been my target. And now I’ve made it.
“I have climbed my mountain, I am on the peak, so this feels right. My strongest emotion right now is deep gratitude to everybody who supported me to make that dream happen.
“I pushed like crazy in every area after the disappointments of the last two years, and they fuelled my motivation to levels I had never experienced before.
“Of course that had an impact on the ones I love, too – it was a whole family effort of sacrifice, putting everything behind our target.”
The German later returned to motorsport after establishing Rosberg X Racing to compete in the all-electric off-road racing series Extreme E, with the team winning both the 2021 constructors’ and drivers’ titles.
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