Reigning World Champion Jorge Lorenzo has said he believes Marco Simoncelli has had time to think about his incident with Dani Pedrosa at Le Mans and now understands what he has to do in the MotoGP World Championship.
Speaking at the pre-event press conference after a statement from race direction which said Simoncelli had been told off for the last time earlier in the day, Lorenzo said that he thinks the Italian knows where he went wrong but also urged Spanish fans not to go overboard with their reaction to seeing him on track.
"We have spoken a lot about the incident now and the people in the crowd must be quiet. I think Simoncelli has understood what he has to do in the future and it is ok now," said Lorenzo.
"I ask the crowd not to exaggerate the situation. He made mistakes and I have made mistakes. Every rider has made mistakes overtaking but I think he understand. People do not need to shout at him in the future."
The statement from race direction reads: "The Race Direction composed of Paul Butler, Race Director and IRTA representative, Claude Danis, FIM representative, Javier Alonso, Dorna representative, and Franco Uncini, IRTA Riders Safety delegate today met with San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Marco Simoncelli. Also present was San Carlo Honda Gresini Team Principal Fausto Gresini. The purpose of the meeting was to give all the parties the opportunity to discuss the incident at the French MotoGP in Le Mans that resulted in Marco Simoncelli being penalised with a ride through penalty and to draw a line under it.
"The Race Direction informed Simoncelli that they wished to ensure that he was aware of his mistake and to avoid any repetition in the future. Simoncelli responded that in the interval after the French Grand Prix he had had time for reflection and regretted the statements he had made in the heat of the moment immediately after the Grand Prix. He also recognized that he had made an error of judgment and stated that in future he would try to evaluate situations better and be a little more cautious."
