Dominique Aegerter, who is currently leading the Supersport World Championship, was given a one-race suspension for acting in an unsportsmanlike manner by simulating concussion symptoms.
After being discovered to have “simulated a medical condition” in the wake of an accident during last weekend’s World Supersport event at Most, Dominique Aegerter, a former Moto2 regular, was given a one-race suspension.
Aegerter, who had not lost since the second race of the season opener at Aragon, was attempting to win the World Superbike Championship’s principal support series for a record-breaking tenth time in a row.
However, the Swiss rider was unfortunate to be involved in a five-rider crash that Can Oncu of Puccetti Kawasaki caused at the start of the Most double-header, eliminating him from the contest even before he had reached Turn 1.
Given the significant advantage he had in the standings, the DNF would have only been a small setback to his title defense plans. However, it was later discovered that Aegerter had purposefully stayed on the ground in an effort to draw a red flag, perhaps in the hopes of rejoining at the restart.
But the race went on as usual, giving teammate Yamaha rider and his main opponent for the championship Lorenzo Baldassari the opportunity to claim his second victory of the year.
Two of the riders were seen leaving the scene without displaying any obvious signs of extreme distress in broadcast footage, and two additional riders returned to the race. While Aegerter eased himself back into a sitting posture in the gravel trap before boarding a stretcher, it looked that he was unable to stand despite the assistance of marshals.
Since the stewards believed that the Aegerter had behaved inappropriately in the moments following the race, he was disqualified from the second leg of the doubleheader. In the document provided to stewards during the investigation, Aegerter admitted to trying to slow down the recovery process and stop the race.
“On Saturday afternoon, Aegerter was rescued on the track and checked by the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) at the Medical Centre and was declared unfit due to the presence of possible concussion symptoms,” a statement from the stewards read.
“On Saturday evening, Aegerter went to the Hospital for further assessments and on Sunday morning he admitted the simulation of symptoms to the CMO, and after a deep re-check was declared able to ride.”
“Following a FIM Stewards investigation, FIM Stewards ruled that Aegerter acted in an unsporting manner by simulating a medical situation in order to delay the recovery process and thus force a stoppage of the race by red flag.”
“This is something that the 31-year-old Swiss rider admitted to with a supporting statement, submitted to the FIM Stewards. For his unsporting behaviour, he has been given an immediate one race ban, which means he will not take part in Race 2 at Most.”
“After clarifications of yesterday’s behaviour to the Chief Medical Officer of the circuit and the subsequent further medical assessments and examinations that have been made, it is declared that Dominique Aegerter would have been fit to race but will not take part due to the FIM Stewards’ ruling.”
Later, the 31-year-old apologized publicly to the public through his Ten Kate team and accepted full responsibility for his deeds.
“First of all, I am sorry about the whole situation that arose after the incident in Race 1 as it was a very hectic situation, I did not act correctly and made mistakes,” the Ten Kate team rider said. “There was a lot of pressure, adrenaline and emotions. I never wanted to put other people in danger; I want to apologise for that.”
“The championship is not finished yet, our focus now lies on the second part of the season in which I, together with the team, will work very hard to perform in the best way possible.
“I want to thank the team and all the sponsors, my family, friends and fans and everyone else for their unconditional support. We will never give up, see you in Magny-Cours.”
Aegerter was reportedly deemed unsuitable for the second race by the series’ chief medical officer after being examined at the medical center, despite the fact that a follow-up examination on Sunday morning found that he was in fact fit to ride – before the suspension was imposed.
The title deficit between Lorenzo Baldassarri and Aegerter was reduced to 14 points as a result of his victories in both of the races.
Troy Bayliss’s son Oliver, who crashed out of Race 2 after placing 13th in Race 1, is currently in 17th place in his debut season. Ben Currie and Tom Edwards, both Australians, are ranked 29th and 33rd, respectively, in the standings.
