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Controversial grand prix rider Romano Fenati will be “starting from zero” when he reunites with the Marinelli Snipers team for a return to Moto3 in 2019.
Fenati, once a protege of MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi, made headlines when he attempted to grab a rival’s brake lever during a Moto2 race in September in a moment of anger.
He was swiftly cut from Marinelli Snipers’ Moto2 squad and his 2019 contract with MV Agusta in the same series was also terminated – before his FIM licence was withdrawn for the remainder of the year.
While his career initially looked to be damaged irreparably, the 22-year-old Italian was soon linked to a return to the grand prix paddock.
MV Agusta was thought to have considered reinstating his deal – only to hire Dominique Aegerter instead – before Marinelli Snipers made the call to bring him back into the fold alongside Toni Arbolino.
Quizzed on the logic of Fenati returning to Moto3 rather than continuing in the intermediate class, Marinelli Snipers tech chief Mirko Cecchini said: “It’s like he would like to start from zero. This is a new life for him, and OK, he did a mistake, a big mistake, but I think that the media have made it bigger than what he was deserving.
“So, we push together, to begin a new life, together.
“This is a good point for us, because we have next year a young rider that is growing up in Toni and an experienced rider”
The team had previously signed Makar Yurchenko for 2019, but the Kazakh rider has already made way for Fenati on next season’s Moto3 entry list and will instead link up with the RBA Boe Skull Rider outfit.
Fenati originally spent six seasons in Moto3, taking a podium finish on his grand prix level debut in 2012 and winning his second race.
His career then took a number of twists, including an acrimonious split with Rossi’s VR46 team before he finished runner-up to 2019 Suzuki MotoGP recruit Joan Mir on a Marinelli Snipers-run Honda in the ’17 Moto3 title race.