Dutch TT

The Dutch Tourist Trophy (also known as the Dutch TT and the Dutch Grand Prix) is a premier round in the MotoGP calendar dating back to the 1949 500cc championship.

Assen welcomed the inaugural running of the 500cc world championship to the Netherlands for the third round of the FIM series. It has since held the premier class of motorcycle racing each year except for in 2020 as MotoGP skipped the Dutch TT amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The 2020 meeting was set to be the 90th running of the Dutch TT at Assen, and the 72nd as part of the world championship. Instead, only 11,500 fans could attend the 90th Dutch TT in 2021 rather than the 110,000 loyal MotoGP fans who flock to be at the Dutch GP every year.

History of the MotoGP Dutch TT

The Dutch TT is one of the most coveted Grand Prix on the MotoGP calendar, with the riders eager to claim glory at Assen – motorcycle racing’s Cathedral of Speed. It is a temple of what two-wheeled racing is about, while bringing together the municipality of Assen and MotoGP.

Assen held its first Dutch TT long before the 500cc world championship began as the Assen and Omstreken Motorcycle Club decided to move the race for its second edition. It found its home at a new 16.5km (10.2m) circuit, and has kept the Dutch TT at Assen every time since.

The first Dutch TT took place on Saturday, July 11, 1925 as 28.4 kilometres (17.6m) of public roads between Rolde, Borger and Schoonloo echoed with the roaring sound of racing. But it would be a one-and-done race before the first version of Assen gave the Dutch TT it’s home.

Assen’s 16.5km (10.2m) circuit even remained the stage of the Dutch GP every year – except for when not held due to WWII – until 1955 when the track’s new 7.7km (4.7m) layout came in. Changes to Assen’s north loop in 1984 saw the length of the circuit drop to 6.1km (3.7m).

Yet it was not until 1992 that the TT Circuit Assen was entirely removed from the Dutch road network. Further changes to the layout of Assen also arrived before the 2006 MotoGP round with the first sector cut for a 4.5km (2.8m) circuit, while also improving the safety standards.

The 2016 Dutch TT also marked the first time that MotoGP moved the Grand Prix race start from the traditional last Saturday of June to the last Sunday of June. The Dutch TT had held the honour of being the only Grand Prix on the calendar that MotoGP staged on a Saturday.

Controversy is close to hand at the Dutch TT including for Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez

The final Dutch TT on the 16.5km (10.2m) circuit in 1954 remains one of the greatest races produced in the Netherlands in 500cc/MotoGP history. Over 100 motorcycles assembled to race at Assen, yet Geoff Duke stole the show in front of 150,000 fans on his way to the title.

Eddie Lawson stole the headlines at the spectacular 1987 Dutch TT at Assen, as well, as the American beat rivals Wayne Gardner and Randy Mamola. Rain drenched the Netherlands on race day but Lawson straddled the waves and his Yamaha to deny Honda and Gardner glory.

Controversy is also often close to hand whenever MotoGP visits Assen, none less so than in 2015 when Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez made contact and the Yamaha rider cut over the final chicane to win the Dutch TT. It was a fight that lives long in MotoGP fans’ memory.

Rossi took his first pole position of the season at Assen but would not shake his Honda rival as Marquez clung onto the Italian’s tail to the wire. The riders instantly bit back at the other if one sought a move, leaving Marquez to try a late lunge into the final chicane but sit Rossi up.

The final chicane at Assen also cost Colin Edwards his first MotoGP race win at the Dutch TT of 2006. After sliding past the Honda of Nicky Hayden through the T14 kink, victory was his to lose. But, in a bid to take his compatriot wide, Edwards dipped into the grass and fell off.

Jack Miller, Marc Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia have won classic races at the Dutch TT

Assen witnessed a first-time MotoGP race winner in 2016, though, as Jack Miller on a Honda for Marc VDS won the Dutch TT. Torrential rain plagued the premier class’ visit that year but the Australian weathered the storm to charge from P18 on the grid to a remarkable victory.

The 2018 Dutch TT also returned a remarkable victory for Marquez, even if the Honda rider started it from pole position. Alex Rins, Maverick Vinales, Andrea Dovizioso, Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo all took turns to test the Spaniard yet Marquez stood strong in a never-ending fight.

Francesco Bagnaia produced one of the most dominant weekends in MotoGP history at the 2024 Dutch TT, too. The Ducati rider controlled the event by topping every practice session, qualifying on pole with a lap record and leading every lap of the Sprint and even Grand Prix.

What is the TT Circuit Assen like?

The Dutch Grand Prix has been held exclusively at the TT Circuit Assen since the first edition of the race as part of a 500cc world championship in 1949. So, it is also the longest-serving track in premier class history, having appeared in every season except the 2020 campaign.

As well as having the nickname of the Cathedral of Speed, Assen is even regarded as the University of Two Wheels. No part of the circuit gives a bigger lesson than the final chicane, with riders arriving out of a sharp left-hand turn and having to carry speed into the next lap.

A poor run through the chicane ruins both the lap a rider runs off and the next. Turn 1 is an important bend to get right, too, as running wide on the exit is all too easy. Turns 3, 4 and 5 then provide the next overtaking opportunities before picking up speed on the charge to T6.

Carrying speed through the corners makes or breaks a rider’s chances of winning the Dutch TT at Assen. Riders risk getting swamped if they ease off the throttle too much on the burst from T5 all the way to T9 plus T10 all the way to the braking point for the T16-17-18 chicane.

Winners of the MotoGP Dutch TT

Below, MotoGP News has listed every premier class rider to win the Dutch Grand Prix…