Marc Marquez won the Dutch Grand Prix after claiming a clinical masterclass at MotoGP’s Cathedral of Speed, while Alex, his brother and closest rival, collided in the final lap and suffered a hand fracture.
The older Marquez seized control of Assen on Sunday as it celebrated its centenary of motorcycle racing. He continued to dominate with a commanding 68 points over Alex and won his seventh championship.
Marco Bezzecchi of Aprilia finished second, Francesco Bagnaia of Ducati third, leaving the two-time champion with a daunting 126-point gap in front of his teammate after 10 rounds.
Bagnaia had won the previous three Assen races, but Pedro Acosta came in second after taking the lead early in the race, but he overcame that result to finish on the podium.
Valentino Rossi finished his career with 89 victories, while Marc, who crashed twice on Friday, also came close to Italian motorcycling legend Giacomo Agostini with 68 titles.
Fabio Quartararo of Yamaha had won the race but crashed in the sprint on Saturday, Marc’s ninth win of the season, and Bagnaia was slow off the line to make the perfect start.
With 24 laps left, Gresini Racing’s Alex was in second place, but Marc made his move to overtake his brother and wait patiently for the victory.
Bezzecchi squeezed his way past the Gresini rider while Acosta also made an overtake stick to push the younger Marquez down to fifth after Alex briefly lost his concentration and used a new aero package on his Aprilia.
Alex Marquez slams into the wall.
Marc and his brother Alex collided heavily when they made contact in a battle for fourth, while Marc found a gap before the final chicane on lap five to overtake Bagnaia and take the lead.
In the incident, Alex appeared to lock his front tire, which caused a puff of smoke as the bike slammed against the ground.
A left-hand fracture was immediately identified as the cause of his immediate transport, and Gresini stated that the 29-year-old would travel to Madrid for surgery later on Sunday. On Monday, more details are anticipated to be released about Alex’s recovery timeline.
As Bezzecchi and Acosta moved up to the podium, it appeared as though Bagnaia was losing steam. At the end of lap 14, the Italian Ducati rider took third place back from Acosta and headed for Bezzecchi.
The six-time MotoGP champion, however, held steady as he managed his tyres and maintained his pace until he took the chequered flag despite Bezzecchi’s exertion on Marc.
Before the German Grand Prix in two weeks, the MotoGP calendar has a weekend off.
Source: Aljazeera
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