MOTOGP
MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
ROUND 8/JUNE 27, 2015
CIRCUIT VAN DRENTHE/ASSEN, NETHERLANDS
P56
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
PHOTOGRAPHY BY GOLD & GOOSE
A
good story has a begin-
ning, a middle and an
end. The best add the
adjective "thrilling" to each. By
this measure, the Dutch TT was
a very good story indeed.
The beginning was two-
fold: the return to form of Marc
Marquez—on the front row and
a challenging fastest in morning
warm-up; a switch to last year's
chassis having at last given him a
bike that he can ride to and over
the limit without crashing. And
something similar for Valentino
Rossi, whose own new chassis
restored him to pole position for
the first time in more than a year.
Anticipation was sky-high.
The middle was 25 laps of
head-to-head between the old
master and the new pretender.
Rossi's Movistar Yamaha team-
mate Jorge Lorenzo could do
nothing but watch, from an
increasing distance, as his
chances of a fifth win in a row
disappeared.
It was a fascinating spell, as
Rossi led away, and Marquez
stalked him patiently. Nobody
could remember seeing the
Repsol Honda riding with such
restraint. Had his last two race
crashes tamed the monster
within?
WHAT A RACE. WHAT
Valentino Rossi reigns supreme at Assen,
coming out on top in a thrilling fight for the
finish against Marc Marquez
