That left five up front as
Marc led Bezzecchi, Acosta now
ahead of
Bagnaia and Mor-
bidelli. Soon Maverick Vinales
(Tech3
KTM) tagged on, mak-
ing this a lead group of six, with
Fabio
Di Giannantonio (VR46
Ducati) not far back in seventh.
After the predictable ending at
Mugello, this was poised to be
the closest MotoGP race of the
year so far.
Yet there was always the
sense that Marc would drop the
pace and break them apart. He
first tried on lap 13, only for Bez
-
zecchi to immediately respond,
halving a five-tenths of
a second
deficit in the process. Then it
was Bagnaia's turn to rally, pass
-
ing Acosta at the chicane on lap
14
before posting two fastest
laps in succession. Morbidelli,
Vinales and Di Giannantonio
couldn't keep up.
It then became a race of
attrition. First, Acosta dropped
off the lead trio with six to go.
Then it was Bagnaia, falling a
full second behind the leader on
lap 21. And on the penultimate
lap, Marquez had eked out a
half second. Despite incessant
pressure from behind, a flawless
performance saw him win by
six-tenths of a second. Asked if
his Friday injuries had affected
him at all, Marquez shrugged
and said, "Adrenaline is the best
painkiller."
With Bagnaia third, Acosta
fourth, Vinales won out the
scrap with the VR46 Ducatis for
fifth. Morbidelli was handed a
long-lap penalty for cutting the
chicane when fighting Di Gi
-
annantonio on lap 19, meaning
WALKING WOUNDED
Marc Marquez was largely okay
after two enormous crashes
on Friday at Assen. He hurt his
left elbow in a fast fall at the
fearsome Ramshoek in FP1,
before crashing out at around
130 mph at Ruskenhoek in the
closing minutes of practice. "I
just have contusions," he said
at the close of Friday. "That
was the best news of today,
because both crashes were with
high speed. They weren't big
crashes, but both of them were
in both corners where the gravel
hits a lot. And it's not gravel, it's
rocks." Marquez had suffered a
contusion in his groin, as well as
an abrasion to his chin, which
required a stitch.
NO NEW TIRE
FROM MICHELIN
Michelin confirmed it will not
introduce the new front tire it has
been developing over the past
few years. After largely positive
tests at Misano last September,
as well as at Jerez and Aragon
this term, it was hoped that the
new rubber could avoid the
recent problems of volatile tires
that are susceptible to sharp
rises in pressure, brought on by
being in the slipstream. Ultimate-
ly, the French firm, which leaves
MotoGP at the close of next
year, felt that avoiding change
was better, citing that the teams
want stability and no change.
Briefly...
(Left) Marco
Bezzecchi
had a solid
weekend after
finishing on the
podium in both
premier-class
races. (Below)
Francesco
Bagnaia was
always in the
hunt, especially
during Sunday's
MotoGP, where
he got on the
podium.
VOLUME 62 ISSUE 26 JULY 1, 2025 P85
