MOTOGP
FIM MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
ROUND 10 / JUNE 28-30, 2019
TT CIRCUIT ASSEN / ASSEN, NETHERLANDS
P66
close behind, the factory Ducatis in pursuit.
Hopes of an ultra-close paint-swapping battle
like last year's came to naught, however. A
distraught Rins was out on lap three, losing the
front into Der Bult left-hander at the furthest
point of the circuit, and while Mir led briefly, by
the end of that lap he'd been shuffled back to
fourth by the final chicane, with Quartararo now
in front, and Marquez and Vinales swapping to
and fro in his wake. Marquez set fastest lap, a
tenth short of the record, on lap four.
At that point, both were happy to let the
youngster set the pace; while Vinales made
expressed hope it would be less problematic in
Germany in a week's time, with a mainly left-
hand circuit.
Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati) was clearly off the
pace, and dropped to fifth, embroiled with sec-
ond Suzuki rider Joan Mir while factory Ducati
teammate Danilo Petrucci went ahead. But by
the finish he'd regained fourth as Mir ran into
major grip problems and Petrucci succumbed to
the rapidly closing Morbidelli.
Rins had leapt off the line, with Mir and Quar-
tararo chasing him over the first couple of laps,
while Vinales and Marquez changed places
Zarco (5) had another miserable race, failing to finish on the KTM.
Petrucci and Mir (36) get a little close for company.
