A neutral when up shifting is relatively unlikely and not as problematic as an unexpected neutral while braking.
I did that a few times when I just started riding. :lol:
You can actually find a false neutral between any two gears - it's just easier between 1st and 2nd because there's a detent.
I've also heard that it's a safety feature, in that if you suddenly need to accelerate from a stop to avoid an accident, putting first at the bottom makes it much easier to ensure you're in gear (that is, kick down one, and you're in first,) and not in neutral.
Following on the recent suggestion of making new threads, here goes:
Why motorcycle gearboxes have the neutral between 1st and 2nd?
Why not have neutral, 1st, 2nd, etc?
You can actually find a false neutral between any two gears - it's just easier between 1st and 2nd because there's a detent.
because when you're shifting down in a spirited manner, the chance of you ending up in neutral would be too big