🥃Quartararo was sent flying f🅺rom his Yamaha when he hit the back of Marquez as the eight-time world champion saved a slide on the exit of Turn 3.

“I had a small moment, which you have📖 many times with a cold tyre,” explained Marquez, who was making his racing comeback from a fourth operation on his right arm.

“I lost the rear a little bit and closed 🐽the gas, but it was☂ not a very big moment.

“I saw the images a🦂nd the problem is that Fabio was super close, as is normal at the start.

“So it was a race incident, and very unlucky.”

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Marquez denied that he had been riding especially aggressively in the opening ꦦturns.

“My mentality was theꦆ same as I said all weekend: Try to get kilometres, try to finish the race, and we didn't get the target. I just did one lap,” he said.

“The start was amazing, but 🍌just instinct. I w𓆉ent outside, and when I exited the first corner, I was sixth.

“It🗹 was something I didn't expect but then, I said, ‘OK, we will see’, but after just two corners ev🍌erything went in the wrong way.”

Marquez: ‘I felt it was locking, everything became crazy’

But having remaine🐟d upright after the Quartararo ♚impact, more drama was to follow just a few corners later.

A broken piece of Quartararo’s fairing became jammed in Marquez’s ride-height device, causing his bike to veer to the side on the exit of Turn 7 -🌌 creating an impact with Nakagami.

“I felt something strange in Turn 5 𒁃and I said, ‘what's going on?’ But when I went in💯to turn 6-7, I felt OK. Then in Turn 7, Nakagami overtook me on the inside and went wide. So then I was inside of him, already a little bit in front, and I engaged the holeshot [ride-height device, on the exit].

“As soon as I engaged the holeshot, I felt like the rear wheel was locking. I checked very carefully the images, and you can see that a piece [of bodywo💙rk] is going out from the fairing. And then꧅ when I felt it was locking, everything became crazy, and the bike had that rear lock, going to the left side, and no torque.

“After that incident, I retired [on the pits]. But I didn't retire because of the 🍌Taka incident, I retired because of the Fabio incident.꧑ Both actions were very unlucky for everything.”

Marquez: ‘My apologies to Taka and Fabio’

Some felt the Marquez-Nakagami collision showed why aerodynamics and ride-height devices should be restricted in 🤡MotoGP on safety grounds.

“I think the Fabio crash, device or no device, aerodynamics or no aerodynamics, will happ💙en,” Marquez said. “Because it was completely a racing incident like we saw many times in the past🔜.

“A small mistake from the front guy, the rider behind was planning to oꦬvertake me, was super close, that is normal and it happens.

“But the Nakagami incident, without the holeshot and the wings, for su🐎re we would avoid it.

“Because when I engaged the holesh🌃ot is when I locked the rear wheel, because I had a piece of Fabio's🎶 fairing between the rear fender, in that area.

“The🎐n Taka fell down because when we ha🥂d the contact, I was also decreasing my speed because I had the mechanical problem. So it was a really unlucky action.”

Marquez was seen heading into the LCR pits to apologise shor✃tly after retiring from the race and said he would also try to speak with Quartararo, whose title lead has been slashed from 3꧃0 to 11 points over Sunday’s runner-up Francesco Bagnaia.

“I spoke especially with Taka's team and apologised, because it was a real mechanical problem but if you just see it from outside, it 🅠looks like I went straight in💎to Taka.

“Later I will try to speak with Fabio, who was in the Clinica Mobile, 🍌also with Taka💧.

“My apologies to him and Fabio."

Nakagami suffers right-hand damage

While Quartararo escaped with friꦉction burns and abrasions to his chest, Nakagami's participation⛎ in this weekend's home Japanese Grand Prix could be in doubt.

"I had a good start, but then had an accident on lap one. I had contact with Marc and had a nasty crash, so I’m really disappointed," he said. "I’m now going to Barcelona to check the wo꧋und on the 4th and 5th fingers on my right hand. I will keep everyone updated and really appreciate all the support.

"I will try my best to recoverಌ and hope꧃fully we can race at my home GP in Japan.”

‘People complain about Ducati, but Bastianini still has a title chance’

Meanwhile, asked for his opinion on the Bagnaia vs Bastianini - Ducati vs Ducati - victory battle, decided in the 🦄Gresini rider’s favour after a last-lap pass, Marquez ♈said:

“I think 🎃it was a great fight.🎉 And Enea is riding really well, and normally is the strongest one now in the last laps.

“Many people complain a🉐bout Ducati [not apply🌊ing team orders today] but Enea still has a chance to win the title.

“As we ⭕saw today with Fabio -♒ of course I was there in that action - but it was completely a racing incident, and can happen to Bagnaia or to Bastianini.”

Bastianini’s fourth win of the season has moved the young Italian to fourth in the standings and 48 points from Quartararo, with 125 points still ava𝐆ilable.

Aprilia's Aleix Espargaro, third on Sunday, currently splits the Ducati riders, sitting 17 points 💞from Quartararo.