Lorenzo respects CAS decision, focused on race

Jorge Lorenzo refused to discuss the Sepang crash between Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez. The title contender said that he would respect the decision made by the Court of Arbitration for Sport but that he would not be drawn into a discussion on Sepang.

“I will have to respect the decision [of CAS] that they decide; to be honest I arrived here just thinking about the weekend, which is very important for me,” said Lorenzo. “I want to not speak about anything else apart from what can happen in the future on the track. I respect the decision, look forward for tomorrow.”

The only mention that Lorenzo would discuss relating to Sepang was to apologise for his reaction on the podium when he was seen giving a thumbs down when Rossi received his trophy.

“The gesture I made on the podium was a mistake and I regret that and I want to say sorry for that and especially to the people who watch this on the television. It is not a sporting symbol, especially for the young people who are watching MotoGP around the world, so sorry for the gesture. Apart from this, I don’t have anything else to say. I want to just concentrate on the weekend.”

With the CAS upholding the decision and punishment of Race Direction to penalise Rossi in Sunday’s race with a back of the grid start hands Lorenzo a key edge in the title fight. The Spaniard trails Rossi by seven points but said that the penalty for Rossi doesn’t change how he’ll approach the race.

“It doesn’t matter the decision that they make today [CAS], the sanction is the same. If they changed the sanction, I would race completely the same on Sunday, so this will not change my way of riding, my way of thinking about the race. I always try to get the maximum from me, from the bike and it’s what I’m going to do on Sunday; try to make the best race of my career.”