Moto2 World Championship rider Romano Fenati has been fired by his current race team, Marinelli Snipers Team, and has also had his 2019 contract with the Forward Racing MV Agusta Moto2 team terminated.

Stefano Manzi attempted to pass Fenati during the Moto2 World Championship race Sunday, September 9 at Misano, but that pass attempt resulted in contact between the two riders and both running off the track.

In apparent retaliation, Fenati reached over with his left hand while passing Manzi and applied the front brakes of Manzi’s racebike while they were going down the front straightaway at 135 mph.

For his actions, FIM disqualified Fenati from the race and suspended the Italian from the next two races.

Fenati’s current team, Marinelli Snipers Team, issued a statement Monday morning that said they were terminating the rider. That statement read: 

“Here we are. Now we can communicate that the Marinelli Snipers Team shall terminate the contract with the rider Romano Fenati, from now on, for his unsporting, dangerous and damaging conduct for the image of all. With extreme regret, we have to note that his irresponsible act endangered the life of another rider and can’t be apologised for in any way. The rider, from this moment, will not participate in any more races with the Marinelli Snipers team. The team, Marinelli Cucine, Rivacold and all the other sponsors and the people that always supported him, apologised to all the World Championship fans.”

About an hour later on Monday morning, Forward Racing MV Agusta issued the following statement: 

Fenati will no longer be a part of our project

The Serious misconduct by Romano Fenati towards Stefano Manzi during the Moto2 race during the Gran Premio di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini which took place at the Circuito Marco Simoncelli in Misano Adriatico will have repercussions for the future, beyond the black flag shown to Fenati, and the two-race ban imposed by Race Direction. MV Agusta will not be represented by Fenati in 2019, the year which will see the return of the Varese factory to the highest level of motorcycle racing, and the Moto2 World Championship. The agreement between MV Agusta Reparto Corse Forward Racing Team and Romano Fenati has been terminated.

Giovanni Castiglioni, President of MV Agusta, said: “In all my years of watching sport, I have never seen behaviour as dangerous as this. A rider who can act like this can never represent the values of our company for our brand. For this reason, we do not want him to be the rider with which MV Agusta makes its return to the World Championship.”

Giovanni Cuzari, Team Owner: “After the disgraceful episode between Romano Fenati and Stefano Manzi, it is impossible for the team to maintain its planned collaboration with the rider from Ascoli for the 2019 season. Fenati’s behaviour is incompatible with the sporting values of the Forward Racing Team and of MV Agusta. For this reason, though we bitterly regret it, we are forced to cancel our project with Fenati. Our sport is already extremely dangerous, and any act which increases the risks involved for the riders is intolerable. We cannot accept behaviour of this type from one of our future riders.”

Manzi received a penalty of six grid positions at the next Grand Prix for his “irresponsible” pass attempt on Fenati.