Crutchlow falls as Espargaro stops

Cal Crutchlow's Austrian MotoGP ended on just the second lap when a bike problem for Pol Espargaro saw the KTM rider suddenly powerless at Turn 3.

Tito Rabat and Crutchlow were caught up in the aftermath, with the LCR Honda rider down and out.

"I only managed just over a lap of the race, I was unfortunate to be caught up in an incident when Pol Espargaro’s bike stopped and the rider in front of me [Rabat] hit the back of Pol and evidently I hit the back of Rabat," Crutchlow said.

"It was really slow speed when I hit him, his bike hit my handlebar and just took me down.

"I was feeling quite positive for the race and felt we could have got a good result here, so it’s a disappointing way to end and not get information from a valuable race that I thought we could learn good lessons from.

"But that’s the way racing goes sometimes and we now have to look forward to my home Grand Prix at Silverstone."

Crutchlow is now ninth in the world championship standings, behind fellow satellite rivals Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha) and Jack Miller (Pramac Ducati).

Quartararo finished on the podium but Miller also crashed out at Red Bull Ring.