MotoGP riders mourn death of Moto3 competitor Jason Dupasquier

Swiss rider Dupasquier was involved in an incident in the Mugello MotoGP and succumbed to injuries in the hospital

The 2021 MotoGP race at Mugello that took place over the weekend was a sombre one that was scarred due to the death of Moto3 Swiss rider Jason Dupasquier.

The 19-year-old crashed in a multi-rider incident after Turn No 9 during qualifying and sustained severe injuries. After initial on-track treatment, he was flown to a hospital in Florence, from where the tragic news of his demise later came.

Just before the MotoGP race, a minute’s silence was observed at the track.

He made his debut in the Red Bull Rookies Cup in 2019 and finished eighth. He then earned a two-year contract in Moto3 with the CarXpert Prustel GP team on a KTM machine.

The whole of Mugello was naturally shocked with the passing of Dupasquier.

Yamaha MotoGP rider and Frenchman Fabio Quartararo said: “It was tough because when you have a minute of silence before the start the emotion from my side came really quick and it is difficult to stay focussed.

“You don’t have preparation. You go for it and try to forget. But every time you go into Turn 9, just one thing is going through your mind. But you are on a mission and that is you want to win. That was going away step by step during the race. The worst is when you are leading and when you have some margin to the second-placed guy. That is when you start to think a lot of things.

"To lose one of our riders is a risk of our sport. When the moment arrives, it is not easy. We will try to forget a bit of this tough moment," he added.

Factory KTM rider Miguel Oliveira said: “There is no preparation for anything like this. It is a very thin area where you want to beat the other guy. We respect him and also we came into the race with a lot of respect for each other. The only lesson I can take out of today is that we should respect each other more and more. This is the reality. We are all together.

“On the racetrack, we are alone. But racing in the group at high speeds and corners there is very little you can do to avoid situations like that. I feel sorry for Jason and his family. I cannot imagine the pain that they are going through. We must carry on because that is the biggest tribute we can pay to him,” he added.

Reigning world champion and Suzuki rider Joan Mir said: “A lot of times, we forget what can happen. We have to respect each other a lot and always be responsible. We should not forget that this is a dangerous sport. So, all the strength that I can give to the family. It was a difficult day.”