Last year’s MotoGP World Championship did not excel in terms of producing regular down-to-the-wire battles, rather it was a season blighted by the controversy surrounding flamboyant Italian Marco Simoncelli.The talented Italian incurred the wrath of many of his peers, including Jorge Lorenzo, Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa, earning an unwanted reputation in the class for being reckless.Tragically, Simoncelli died following an accident at Sepang in October, bringing the short career of one of the sport’s most exciting stars to a devastatingly premature conclusion.Australian Casey Stoner won the MotoGP crown for Repsol Honda as he dominated on the RC212V, but the year will largely be remembered for the passing of Simoncelli, who had been tipped as a natural successor to Valentino Rossi.Here is a look back at what the riders had to say about some of the key moments from the 2011 season.1. Jerez, Spain R2, 3 April 2011Stoner on Rossi clash:“I heard Valentino arriving and I wasn’t worried about anyone passing me at that point in the race so I gave him plenty of room. What is more frustrating is the reaction of the marshals and their assistance for Valentino and not for me, it was unbelievable.”Stoner later told an apologetic Rossi in the paddock: “Obviously your ambition outweighed your talent.”2. Sepang, Malaysia, R17, 23 October 2011Andrea Dovizioso on death of Marco Simoncelli:“In these circumstances, words don’t seem to be appropriate. I think of Marco’s family and all the people dear to him, in particular his father and mother. I also have a child and what happened today is the hardest situation you can imagine.“I watched the images and I’m shocked: in a race you fight and push hard and disaster is often around the corner. Marco was a strong rider and he always pushed hard.“We raced together since we were kids, I saw him always pushing to the maximum, he crashed many times, but without major injuries, he seemed invincible. What happened today seems impossible.”3. Le Mans, France, R4, 15 May 2011Dani Pedrosa fumes after Marco Simoncelli incident:“I leave here with a broken collarbone and he with a ride-through penalty – good for him!“Yet again I come out worse off. We only just recovered from the nightmare of the last operation and now I’m hurt again. It is very unfair, I don’t deserve it.This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you’re…

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