Five weeks of summer break are just around the corner. Five weeks in which to recover, gather new strength or think about your future. Everyone deserves a break after the season so far. But before we go on our well-deserved vacation, we still have Assen to come. A track steeped in history, which in the past offered great duels and now with the new asphalt was ready for MotoGP 2021.
Even the preparatory runs were a bit of a shakeup. Because whoever was still in front at the Sachsenring was behind at Assen and vice versa. Marc Marquez won for the eleventh time at the Sachsenring and yet starts the race in Assen from 18th place. Due to many crashes throughout the weekend, no better starting position was possible for the Honda factory rider. It was a completely different story for Maverick Viñales. Was the Sachsenring for the Yamaha rider still an absolute flop and associated with much headshaking, Assen was the complete turnaround.With no change to the Yamaha, the Yamaha still seemed to be a different bike. Perhaps the success of the pole position won was not due to the change not made to the Yamaha, but to the inner attitude of Viñales. Because on Saturday evening leaked that Viñales will leave Yamaha at the end of the season in the direction of Aprilla. Sometimes such a decision can clear the head. Whatever it was, it brought Viñales the pole.
So it went into the race at Assen with surprises. The chance of victory melted away before the first turn for Maverick Viñales. The Yamaha rider was thwarted by his teammate Fabio Quartararo and slipped through to fifth place. After that, the Quartararo show began. Despite increasing pain from his surgery on his right arm, the Frenchman rode to victory with an impressive pace. The Yamaha rider thus extended his world championship lead by 34 points.
Quartararo rode in a different league, with a three-second lead over his pursuers. The decisive overtaking maneuver happened as early as the sixth lap. There Quartararo used the corner speed of his Yamaha and passed Bagnaia, who was in first place, in the last sector. From that moment on, Quartararo extended his lead.
Maverick Viñales was able to secure second place despite the mixed early phase. A conciliatory conclusion. Third place went to Suzuki rider Joan Mir, who rode an unremarkable race. Nothing else we know from him. But if it is successful, who wants to complain 😉.
Everyone has now earned their summer break. And us? We can be curious about what all changes in the summer break. Will there be an end to Valentino Rossi’s career? Who will take a seat on the factory Yamaha? Who will enter the MotoGP?
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