Doohan fined for headbutting bouncer at a strip club

Mick Doohan and Kenny Roberts in the recent Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix. © Honda Pro Image. Former five-time world motorcycle champion Mick Doohan was fined A$2,500 - 1.480 euros - for headbutting a bouncer at a Darwin strip club.

Darwin magistrate Greg Cavanagh said Doohan, had besmirched the reputation he earned by winning the 500cc world championship title five successive times from 1994 to 1998: "You, Mr Doohan, are one of our Australian heroes, a legend, a shining example of success, courage and achievement, a man a lot of young men aspire to follow."

“You have besmirched your reputation in a way that saddens us all. We expect our heroes to be and remain flawless, and when they reveal themselves to have all the weaknesses and faults of mere mortals, it rather upsets us,” Cavanagh said when handing down his sentence.

Prosecutor Gavin Kennedy told the court that Doohan threatened security staff when they asked him to leave the Honeypot nightclub “due to his state of intoxication” because he was removing a part of his clothes in an upstairs section of the club. Bouncers tried to force him to leave the club in the early hours of Saturday. Five-times 500cc world champion spent 14 hours in custody after his arrest.
Sergeant Kennedy said Doohan also told a bouncer: "If you want your job here, leave me alone, and if you ever want to work in Darwin again, I suggest that you leave me alone."
While Doohan was being held with his arms behind his back, his head swung backwards, hitting security guard Adrian Hyde in the face, receiving a fat lip.

John Reeves, Doohan´s lawyer, said his client wanted to apologise to the security guard he assaulted, the police and authorities for the inconvenience he had caused. Mr. Reeves also said Doohan had no recollection of the incident and he was embarrassed by it.
Darwin police have withheld security video from the club, which shows the incident.

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