Marco Bezzecchi
Ai Ogura grabbed his maiden MotoGP win at the Dutch Grand Prix in a dominant display from Aprilia, but Neil Hodgson thinks they will not be happy with the result.
The Noale outfit were expected to be the class of the field at Assen. That did come to fruition, with Ducati being nowhere near Aprilia’s pace, but it was not the factory team that enjoyed the success.
Trackhouse dominated the Dutch Grand Prix weekend with 1-2 finishes in both races. Raul Fernandez won the Sprint race, while teammate Ogura won Sunday’s race ahead of the Spaniard and Jorge Martin.
The top five are now separated by just 40 points! Who is your pick for the 2026 title?
Neil Hodgson thinks Ai Ogura’s victory at Assen will be devastating for Aprilia
Although Aprilia bikes locked out the podium on Sunday, it was the satellite team that had the edge over the factory RS-GPs. Marco Bezzecchi crashed out on lap three in a violent accident, while Martin could not hold on to his pole position.
Martin now leads the championship by seven points over his teammate. The top five are separated by just 40 points, with Ogura moving 15 points clear of Marc Marquez in fifth.
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Aprilia had the chance to pull away in the standings with their superiority at Assen. But Trackhouse’s victory has dented that lead, and Hodgson thinks the Noale outfit will not be happy with the outcome.
He said via TNT Sports 2: “It’s an all-Aprilia podium. If it finishes like this, they’ll be absolutely devastated, Aprilia, won’t they?
“Their main man, their future just had a huge crash. He’s now not leading the championship. Jorge Martin will be leading the championship, he’s leaving for Yamaha next year.”
Marco Bezzecchi escaped significant injury after this HEAVY crash at Assen. What do you think about his title chances now?
Co-commentator Gavin Emmett added: “And there’s been noises, when he skittled them out in Hungary. Already, you can see there’s tension. The line’s been drawn.” Tension is brewing between Martin and Bezzecchi, evidenced by the pair’s scrap in the Sprint race.
Hodgson then said: “And then meanwhile, like I said, if it finishes like this, they will be very concerned about the man in fourth,” who was Marquez. Fortunately for Aprilia, the Ducati rider ended up finishing P7, but he is piling on the pressure in the title fight.
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