"But probably I tried to overtake Maverick in the wrong moment, in the wrong place, especially.

"I knew this was a tricky corner, like the first corner at Austin, which is very similar. And I saw many crashes like this in all the categories, it happened to me also in 2016 with Iannone.

"So probably I was too excited, knowing that I was feeling good and I just felt that I could go faster and faster.

"I didn't make any crazy braking. I was more-or-less alongside Maverick and I braked quite normally, the problem was that we were too many riders [close together].

"In front was Dovi, who prepares very well the exit of the corner, with a wide entry. So I was getting closer and closer to Dovi and to not hit him I needed to brake more and the front tyre closed.

"I think the same moment, in another corner, would not happen. Also if I didn't try to overtake in that moment it wouldn't happen. So it was a combination of factors.

"Obviously the worst thing, more than my crash, is that I made the three others crash. Because they are fighting for the championship. I am not fighting for the championship, I'm very far, I don't have almost any points and it doesn't matter if I crash.

"I had made a good start, but I would love just to crash alone this time. No apology is enough in that moment. You need to say sorry, you need to apologise, but I understand that any apology isn't enough and it's a big pity.

"But in my favour I would say this type of corner created a lot of problems in the past, created a lot of problems today and will do again in the future."

Vinales, who has now been taken out of three races this season, was quick to call for a penalty, with Dovizioso similarly unimpressed. However Rossi and Marquez felt it was a racing incident.

"As always there are many opinions," said Lorenzo.

"My opinion is that this [design] of corner, hairpin, creates these crashes and we saw it many times. Probably today I didn't pay enough attention to that. Especially in the first laps when it's better to be a little bit more cautious in these type of corners.

"It was not an aggressive overtake, but the thing was that Dovizioso was in front - it was my mistake.

"I understand Maverick's reaction because in the past it has happened to me and I had a similar reaction to him. So I understand completely his reaction, I cannot say anything.

"Obviously I'm grateful that Valentino more-or-less said what I said. I also spoke with Dovi and he took my apology quite correctly but obviously no apology is enough.

"I understand all the reactions. I have had bad reactions or hard reactions in the past when it happened to me.

"This is racing. I'll try to learn the lesson for these types of corners in the future. I cannot change the past. Especially, I'm sorry for them."

Lorenzo said he had tried to apologise in person to all the other riders involved.

"I went firstly to Ducati. I saw Gigi and I apologised to him. Then I entered the box and apologised to Dovi.

"Then I went to Yamaha to try to speak with Vale and Maverick. They were not there and I spoke with Maio, the chief mechanic of Maverick and some more people. But I couldn’t speak with the riders."

The brutal finish obviously overshadowed what had been a promising performance for the troubled triple MotoGP champion.

"In general during the weekend we made a step forward. Even more in the race, I understood certain things that gave me more speed and more confidence and we are in a good way to make the bike better and especially make the bike better for me," said Lorenzo, the only Honda rider using soft tyres front and rear.

"So tomorrow we have many things to test and I'm sure some of them will give us something more. So, apart from what happened in the race, I'm very excited to think about tomorrow and test the new parts."

Marquez now holds a 37-point title lead over Dovizioso, while Lorenzo has dropped to 15th in the world championship.