Fabio celebrates at Assen MotoGP

Fast Frenchman Fabio Quartararo extends lead heading into summer break

Fabio Quartararo (Monster Yamaha) heads into the five-week summer break with a 34-point advantage in the MotoGP World Championship after a dominant victory at the Dutch TT. It was his factory Yamaha teammate Maverick Vinales who topped the timesheets all weekend and who started from pole position, but an average start saw him mired in fourth place for the first half of the race as he tried to find a way past LCR Idemitsu Honda rider Taka Nakagami.

Maverick Vinales had his best finish since the opening round

Quartararo nabbed the holeshot and diced with Lenovo Ducati’s Pecco Bagnaia for the first six laps until he finally broke clear of the Italian. By the time he started lap 10 of the 26-lap race he’d found himself with a two-second lead. Bagnaia was handed a long-lap penalty for exceeding track limits on lap 14, just as Vinales finally pinched third off Nakagami and was then gifted second place. The Spaniard, who’s rumoured to split with Yamaha at the end of the season to join Aleix Espargaro in the Aprilia squad, held on to second all the way to the line to pick up his first podium since the season opener in Qatar.

Johann Zarco (Pramac Ducati) also picked off the Japanese rider a few corners later to be the first independent team rider over the line in fourth. Nakagami’s race went from bad to worse as he continued to drop through the field, eventually crossing the line down in ninth place.

Aussie Jack Miller’s run of top-six finishes came to end in the gravel at Turn 5. He remounted but was later black-flagged with smoke coming from his exhaust. Reigning world champ Joan Mir Ecstar Suzuki was on his usual charge through the field having to work hard for his 10th-place qualifying result. He passed Zarco for third with eight laps to go and held firm to take the final step of the podium.

Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM) couldn’t continue his run of podium finishes – the Portuguese rider crossed the line in fifth ahead of Bagnaia who recovered to sixth after his long-lap penalty. The recovery of the day goes to Ecstar Suzuki rider Alex Rins who was nudged wide by Zarco early on in the race and rejoined the track dead last. With similar pace as the leaders, the Spaniard fought his way back through to cross the line in an eventual 11th place.

Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) salvaged a seventh-place finish after starting from 20th on the grid – his worst-ever qualifying result in his premier-class career. He came out on top of a late-race battle with Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Gresini). On the same weekend as he announced he’d reached an agreement with Ducati to supply bikes for his two-rider VR46 MotoGP squad next year, Valentino Rossi was lucky to walk away from a fast crash at seven, his third DNF of the season. Iker Lecuona (Tech3 KTM) was the only other faller during the race, while Jorge Martin (Pramac Ducati) retired from the race as he continues his recovery back to full fitness.

With 156 points, Quartararo heads to his five-week break with a comfortable 34-point lead in the standings ahead of Zarco (122). Miller’s crash promotes Bagnaia (109) and Mir (101) to third and fourth respectively, while the Aussie drops two places to fifth on 100 points.

Aussie Remy Gardner will enjoy his five weeks off with a 31-point lead in the Moto2 World Championship as he picked up his eighth podium in nine races following his Red Bull KTM Ajo teammate Raul Fernandez home for yet another one-two. The pair were joined on the podium by Elf Marc VDS Racing’s Augusto Fernandez, who led home his teammate Sam Lowes and Sky Racing Team VR46’s Marco Bezzechi.

Gardner leads the way won 184 points to Raul Fernandez’s 153. Bezzechi is in third overall on 128, ahead of Sam Lowes (99) and Assen TT non-finisher Fabio Di Giannantonio (73).

Dennis Foggia (Leopard Honda) celebrated on the top step of a Moto3 podium for the second time in 2021 with a strong ride in Assen which held off Gaviota GasGas Aspar squad’s Sergio Garcia by less than one tenth of a second over the line.

Despite serving two long-lap penalties during the race, Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) finished third and over one-second clear of title leader Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Tatsuki Suzuki (Sic58 Squadra Corse).

The result reduces Acosta’s lead at the top of the standings to 48, with Acosta on 158 and Garcia in second place with 110 points. Foggia’s win moves him to third with 86 ahead of Fenati (80) and Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Jaume Masia (72).

The series will resume on 8 August for the Styrian Grand Prix, the first of the double header in Austria.

Fabio celebrates at Assen MotoGP

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