#DUTCHGP – MOTOGP, SPRINT & RACE – Ogura victoryin Assen
MOTOGP – SPRINT: Fernandez flies to Sprint gold as SuperFile Trackhouse take a 1-2 at Assen
Raul Fernandez (SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team) took an awesome Tissot Sprint win at Assen, launching from fourth on the grid to make his way to the lead and hold on to deny teammate Ai Ogura. Behind them, Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) completed the Saturday podium after fighting his way past polesitter Jorge Martin (Aprilia Racing) and Championship leader Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing).
Ogura took the holeshot from second on the grid but Martin struck back quickly for the lead, with the Japanese rider forced to slot back into second early on. Behind, Fernandez was third and Bezzecchi went wide from an initial P4, losing out to Diggia after the #49 had also dispatched a fast-starting Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team). On his tail came Ducati Lenovo teammate Francesco Bagnaia in a high-powered freight train in the front group.
Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) was holding on in P8 behind that lead gaggle, with Pedro Acosta (red Bull KTM Factory Racing) having attacked him early on and then heading wide, dropping back outside the top ten and leaving the Yamaha with Enea Bastianini (Red Bull KTM Tech3) on his tail looking for a way through.
On Lap 2 Fernandez got past his teammate at the same place Ogura had lost the lead a lap before, and at the end of Lap 3 it was all go at the final chicane. Fernandez stuck for the lead against Martin and Di Giannantonio attacked Ogura to take over in third, with all four fanning out across the main straight.
Martin then headed slightly wide on Lap 4 and lost out to Diggia, with Ogura then striking to also move through on the #89. He hit back at the final chicane and was denied again, as Fernandez and Di Giannantonio started to build a gap in the lead.
Ogura got the hammer down on the chase behind the lead duo as the Aprilia Racing machines then started to duel amongst themselves, with Bezzecchi eventually making it stick. Behind them, Marquez, Bagnaia and Bastianini were also locked in combat as Ogura started to reel in the leaders.
By five to go, Fernandez had built his own gap as Ogura homed in on Diggia. The Japanese rider then made a textbook attack at the final chicane, moving through into second, so with only a handful of laps to go it was Trackhouse vs Trackhouse for the win.
Bezzecchi was also on a charge behind, cutting the gap to Diggia in third as the laps ticked down. Martin, Bagnaia, Marc Marquez and Bastianini were close together in a train fighting over fifth and Acosta, meanwhile, was up from P15 where he rejoined after going wide and in P9 – on for a point.
Onto the last lap and the gap had come down as Ogura dug in, but it wasn’t quite enough – still six tenths between the two. Di Giannantonio had also found a little bit of breathing space over Bezzecchi late on, with the closest battle coming down to 2024 title rivals Bagnaia and Martin on the final lap.
The #63 tried to make a move but just couldn’t quite find the gap, forced to try and win a drag race to the line but just losing out. Up ahead however, it was a dream Sprint for SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP team with a 1-2 – Fernandez holding on for a stunning victory from fourth on the grid, with Ogura taking second. Di Giannantonio completed the Sprint podium, leaving Championship leader Bezzecchi just off the Saturday rostrum.
Martin held on by just 0.061 ahead of Bagnaia in their shoot to the line, taking P5 and P6, with Marc Marquez a further tenth behind in seventh. Bastianini was another four tenths back, the #23 taking eighth as Acosta took that final point after his awesome comeback from P15.
MOTOGP – RACE: Golden Ai: Ogura clinches maiden MotoGP victory as Bezzecchi crashes in Assen
Makoto Tamada, 2004 Japanese Grand Prix. 22 years ago, MotoGP witnessed its most recent Japanese winner… until today. A rapidly rising star from the land of the rising sun stood tallest at the Cathedral of Speed in 2026, as Ai Ogura (SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team) clinched a maiden MotoGP victory in a highly dramatic Tissot Grand Prix of the Netherlands. Raul Fernandez came home second to see SuperFile Trackhouse celebrate a double 1-2 in Assen, as a P3 for Jorge Martin (Aprilia Racing) sees the #89 climb to the summit of the World Championship after teammate Marco Bezzecchi, who has gone to the hospital for further checks, suffers an early DNF following a rapid Turn 15 crash.
THE OPENING EXCHANGES
From pole, Martin didn’t hold onto the lead into Turn 1 after Ogura’s fast start from the middle of the front row, but on the cut back out of the opening corner, Martin powered back past the lead the Grand Prix. Ogura and Fernandez were P2 and P3, as Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) passed Bezzecchi on Lap 1.
A royal rumble battle was unfolding on Lap 2, with Martin enjoying some free space in the lead of the Grand Prix. It was Trackhouse vs Trackhouse for P2 at the first corner, and as the duo battled, through came Marc Marquez in the intense battle for P2. Ogura was the one to lose out though, the Japanese rider was shuffled down to P5, behind Fernandez, Marc Marquez and Bezzecchi, before huge drama unfolded at the end of Lap 2.
Bezzecchi, through the ferociously fast Turn 15 of Ramshoek, lost the front while sat behind Marc Marquez. No chance of saving it. The Italian was down the road in a big way, and while the main point was that Bez was relatively alright after a huge off, it was a third Sunday in a row where the pre-race championship leader would score zero points. Disaster for Bez and Aprilia.
FERNANDEZ CHASES, FIGHTING UNFOLDS
Back on track, Fernandez was reeling in Martin at a rapid rate of knots. Marc Marquez was holding P3 for the time being, but Ogura was swarming. The Japanese rider needed to get past the reigning World Champion as soon as possible, and Ogura did what he needed to do. But the Sprint silver medallist had over two seconds to make up to teammate Fernandez and leader Martin.
While Ogura got the better of Marc Marquez, we then strapped in for Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) vs Marc Marquez, with Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) enjoying a VIP ticket to the show in P6. A handful of lunges, then re-overtakes from the 2027 factory Ducati teammates were a treat for the eyes, but it was a scrap that saw third place Ogura quickly scamper to a three-second lead over the trio. And it also meant that Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team), Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP), and Enea Bastianini (Red Bull KTM Tech3) were joining the P4 party.
Right, where were we in the fight at the front? Fernandez was sitting 0.3s behind Martin, with Ogura galloping towards the two other riders on circuit who are in the Aprilia stable. The deficit by Lap 12 of 26 was cut to 1.2s, as attention then returned to the fight further back.
ACOSTA AND PECCO DNF
Acosta, keeping tabs on the Ducati Lenovo duo, suddenly ran wide at Turn 1 and began to cruise. Was it a physical problem, or was it another technical problem? We’d find out soon enough, but before we did, Pecco then encountered a technical problem on his Desmosedici to see the Italian roll into pit lane. Two big hitters out of the top six.
In Acosta’s case, serious right-hand discomfort caused the #37 to pull in and retire from the Grand Prix. Pre-German GP surgery looks like it’s scheduled for the Spanish star.
Then, a small dose of drama was thrown in the direction of Ogura. Around Turn 3, the rear ride height device was clearly stuck in its position and having just set the fastest lap of the Grand Prix to get right on the rear wheel of the top two, Ogura lost crucial ground again. Thankfully, for Ogura anyway, the #79 managed to release the ride height device, and a lap later, the battle for P1 lit up the Cathedral.
AN ALL-APRILIA SCRAP FOR THE WIN AS DIGGIA VS MM93 IGNITES
Fernandez pounced on Lap 17 at the Geert Timmer chicane to demote Martin to P2, and then on the anchors into Turn 1, Ogura followed his teammate through on the #89.
Biding his time, it was Lap 20 before Ogura decided to strike on teammate Fernandez. Turn 9, up the inside, clean as you like, job done. And straight away, Ogura began to stretch his legs. The gap at the start of Lap 22 was 0.9s, as Marc Marquez and Di Giannantonio went head-to-head at the Geert Timmer chicane.
On the first occasion, Di Giannantonio lunged underneath the #93 in what was a copy and paste from Marc Marquez vs Diggia’s boss, Valentino Rossi, in 2015. Both were wide, Marc Marquez over the gravel, Di Giannantonio across the blue and shortcutting, and it was a move that saw the Italian eventually get handed a Long Lap penalty for not losing sufficient time when shortcutting the final chicane.
Once Diggia completed his Long Lap penalty, he dropped right in behind Marc Marquez again, with the superb Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) now in P4.
Another Marc Marquez vs Di Giannantonio head-to-head at the chicane on the penultimate lap, anyone? Go on then. This time, the Italian kept it on the asphalt to make an aggressive but cleaner move, and on the final lap, Di Giannantonio carved past Alex Marquez to grab P4.
While there was plenty to get stuck into in that battle, the headlines were at the front. After narrowly missing out on a debut win in Brno, Ogura only had to wait seven days longer to stand on the top step for the first time in MotoGP. An extraordinary performance at the Cathedral. Japan’s rising star has arrived in the top class of motorcycle racing, and it’s a win that sees Ogura sit just 25 points off the championship lead.
A lead that is now held by Martin after his P3, as Sprint winner Fernandez comes home in P2 to deliver Trackhouse a dream double 1-2 in Assen. What a weekend for the American outfit. And apart from Bezzecchi’s Sunday DNF, a weekend where Aprilia showed real speed and authority.
YOUR ASSEN POINT SCORERS
As mentioned, Diggia battled hard to take the chequered flag in P4, with Alex Marquez putting in a heroic effort to round out the top five. After his Barcelona crash, and then his big Friday crash here in Assen, that’s an incredible ride from the #73.
Marc Marquez ended the Grand Prix in P6, but a post-race penalty for exceeding track limits on the final lap saw the reigning World Champion drop one position, meaningBastianini was promoted to P6. For the #93, with the Sachsenring up next, picking up a P6 in the Sprint and a P7 in the Grand Prix, plus sitting 40 points back while in ‘eco’ mode, isn’t a terrible weekend at the office.
Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) got everything and more out of the Yamaha this weekend in Assen, the Frenchman was a commendable P8 ahead of Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Alex Rins (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP).
Luca Marini (Honda HRC Castrol) was 11th, Jack Miller (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP) earned some points in P12, as Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech3), Diogo Moreira (Pro Honda LCR) and wildcard Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha Factory Racing) close out the points at the Dutch GP.
“It’s been a positive weekend for us – the most solid of the year. At the end I’m happy because we fought for something good today, and we weren’t very far from fourth. All weekend the top three were in another world, but we were very close in the fight behind. We made some improvements to the turning of the bike for today, but I missed a little feeling when I released the brakes. Also, in the end my feeling with the medium wasn’t great. The soft would have been better for my riding style and I was losing a bit on the exit of the fast corners. But it’s not easy to make this decision, and P6 is a good result so I’m happy with today’s race.”
Enea Bastianini P6
“We made a good start, but I had contact with another rider in the first corner. He pushed me wide, and the left wing on my bike was broken. From that moment on, it was really difficult, but I managed to finish the race with what I had. The wings are really important on these bikes, so today we just had to survive the situation. Now we’ll get some rest and come back ready for Sachsenring!”
Diogo Moreira P14
Augusto Fernandez P15
Click the button below to find out all the images of the #KytCrew during the weekend in Netherlands.