Marco Bezzecchi
Marc Marquez of Ducati overcame a heavy crash in practice for the 2025 Dutch Grand Prix at Assen to equal Giacomo Agostini as a 68-time race winner in the premier class.
Only Valentino Rossi now ranks clear of Marquez with his 89 premier class race wins. Yet the Italian is likely to see the Spaniard match his record as a seven-time premier class champion this year, with Marquez now 68 points clear of his brother Alex Marquez atop the standings.
Marquez climbed up to 307 points after only the first 10 rounds of the 2025 MotoGP season at Assen, as the Ducati rider scored his ninth Sprint win and sixth Grand Prix win this year at the Dutch GP. Alex crashed in the Dutch GP, yet is still 58 points above Francesco Bagnaia.
The 32-year-old was not the fastest rider at Assen, but Marquez won the Dutch GP ahead of Aprilia rider Marco Bezzecchi and beat Gresini ace Alex to the Sprint win by being fast in the corners that counted. Marquez’s pace in Turn 15 especially made overtaking him impossible.
Mat Oxley thinks Marc Marquez needs to ‘calm down’ after his high-speed crash at Assen
But the 100th running of the Dutch TT, as it is traditionally known, did not get off to an easy start for Marquez. Ducati saw Marquez crash twice during practice at Assen last Friday, with the Cervera native first falling at the Ramshoek (Turn 15) and also at the Ruskenhoek (T7).
Marquez was pushing at two of his best corners at Assen when he lost the front and the rear of his Desmosedici GP25 respectively. Both crashes also occurred at more than 100mph, so Mat Oxley feels Ducati general manager Luigi Dall’Igna needs to make Marquez ‘calm down’.
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Due to the speed of his two offs, which left Marquez needing stitches in his chin, he felt the physical effects throughout the rest of the Dutch GP weekend. And Oxley thinks his constant need to be on it is what Dall’Igna needs to try to stamp out, albeit unlikely with any success.
Oxley told Motor Sport Magazine: “Both his Dutch tumbles came over 100mph, at corners where many riders have been badly hurt over the years. So, he was lucky he didn’t put himself out for a race or two.
“That’s where his vulnerability lies and that’s where Ducati’s chief engineer Gigi Dall’Igna should have his focus, trying to calm down Marquez’s internal torque delivery.
“Not that Dall’Igna will have any success in this area. Numerous engineers and team bosses have tried to calm the man down, but he’s not for calming. That’s how he is. Take that away and what might he be?”
Ducati will see Marquez push the limits once again in search of his ninth German GP win
Dall’Igna praised Marquez for making the difference after winning the Dutch GP last Sunday, with the six-time premier class champion delivering an intelligent run. Marquez equalled his season-worst qualifying in P4, but was aggressive very early and quick where he had to be.
Additionally, Davide Tardozzi hailed Marquez’s ‘over-the-top’ work with Ducati’s engineers at Assen as he set about scoring a third consecutive Grand Prix win for the first time since 2019 with Honda. He last won three races in a row during a run of five successive Grand Prix wins.
A fourth straight victory certainly is not off the table next time out, either, as MotoGP heads to another of the Spaniard’s playgrounds. Thanks to his immense ability in left-hand corners, Marquez has won the German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring eight times in MotoGP to date.
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