2023 Motul TT Assen Race

So pleased for Jake Dixon. It's been a long time coming!

Wildcat said:

BB exceeded track limits 3 times, so the penalty was exactly in line with the rules, although the last 1 was dubious. LM was hit at the last corner and cut the chicken, but i haven't seen it to say it was unfair or not for the stewards to give him a penalty.

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Hmm so he was hit ran wide in the last corner and received a penalty? Why does that sound familiar? Seems like someone related to him ran wide because a certain rider was on his inside blew the entire last chicane and was declared the winner. Race direction has no direction.

That track limit crap man...

pretty processional.
Binder was good.
Pecco deserved the win.
The Aprilia didn't seem far off at all here, even with the front wing hanging off.

Has all that aero and ride height .... contributed to the processional racing?

Seems like it to me.

Binder penalty was crap

Assen has produced some exciting racing over the years but not this one. Was expecting something at the end but it never materialized. Binder well, rules are rules and you can't throw them into the bin because you like the rider.

Wonder what the hell happened to have so many crashes and retirements. Bagnaia will win the championship easily so the excitement lies in the battle for the 2nd position.

Last lap, why was Martin not given a 5sec penalty?

warthog1 said:

Has all that aero and ride height .... contributed to the processional racing?

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I think so, the racing isn't as good as it used to be a few years ago but the second half of last year was worse imo.
TV showed very little of it but looking at the ticker there was quite a bit of passing between 10th and 15th throughout the race.

Keshav said:

I can hardly believe they built a track that has been approved for MotoGp.

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I don't know how well bikes will race there but it's the same track where F1 raced 10 years ago.

#22 said:

Last lap, why was Martin not given a 5sec penalty?
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A. Márquez was more than 5 seconds behind anyway.

HI All,
Its been a while since i've actually logged on properly and commented but I always check in to read the quality comments found here. The observations made in this forum are great, its very apparent they are made from true fans of the sport and not one eyed fanboys or haters which is a real breath of fresh.

Have to agree with many of the comments being made, things are getting very stagnate and more so as each season kicks off. Ducati seem to be so strong now they seem to be the only ones who can stop themselves from winning a championship. Maybe after finally winning the flag in 2022, they have realised this point and in 2023 given additional support to their factory riders to ensure their customer teams don't dilute their championship points campaign.

Yes, it used to be the Honda Yamaha show but currently it's not even that, if the reason for the Ducati dominance is the aero war and the costs involved then DORNA really should manage it like they did with spec ECU's software and sensors. The last two race weekends have been so lack lustre to watch even given the awesome FBi/JM last lap showdown.

Would love nothing more than to see what MM could do on competitive bike, seems a true waste of talent to see him struggling mid pack on that Honda injuring himself to just keep up.

Keshav said:

Good to see your name back up on the board. Yeah, as long as the aero and ride-height nonsense continues to make bikes disappear for what seems like no reason from under the riders, we're not going to see the kind of passing we did a few years back, like when Dovi came from way behind in the blinding rain to pass Marquez at Motegi. Defo not happening. It's not as bad as the 800 era, but it could get worse.

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Thanks Kesh,
Its been really great reading your comments over my absent years champ.
Couldn't agree more. Seems a shame as only a few years back DORNA braged so proudly about the '9 different winners'. Already it seems at least that the ride height and aero war going unchecked has undone all that good work. It was really great not knowing who could win during those seasons, added so much more entertainment value to the series.

It seems in the past that MM could override that Honda to bridge the gap and get himself up there with sheer determination, but with the amount he is crashing now I don't feel that method can work, let alone be sustainable for his health.

MotoGP bikes fly at Assen so I wouldn't call the race boring necessarily, but the intrigue factor was on the low side, and the desperation, despite being less than halfway through the season, was on the high side.

Since Assen is a high speed track, the riders spend most of their time wrestling the inertial forces of the bikes. It's why Rossi was so successful at the Cathedral, and probably why Ben Spies' only win in the premier class came at Assen. Same might also be true for Hayden, who was known for overriding the equipment and who also achieved his only non-US win at Assen. It should come as no surprise to me that Martin's passage of the eye test was ultimately irrelevant, and Binder's sheer determination was nearly good enough for a double podium.

Bagnaia may not be the most exciting racer, but he is one of the more intelligent operators. Ok sure, the fans are treated to frequent bouts of bemused gesticulation, but this is the second season in a row that Bagnaia et al have made a major adjustment during the season to get their championship campaign back on the rails. Pecco started the season winning sprints and crashing in the grands prix. Now he takes the points available to him. At least, that is his modus operandi since the MotoGP break ended at Mugello.

Binder was also amazing, and it was frustrating to see him lose consecutive podiums for track limit violations. I suppose the silver lining is that they are still using sensors in the green, right? I don't think the stewards have a lot of discretion, they are just reading the data and applying penalties per the regulations.

Bezzechi was amazing, and as he and Martin continue pushing Bagnaia for top Ducati rider, it seems to highlight the importance of staying healthy. Enea has not been so lucky, and as Ducati have dialed in all of their settings and interpreted their data, he and his team are trying to play catch up. Hopefully, the injury has not psychologically affected Enea.

Aleix did yeoman's work in 4th place, but his pace and professionalism were undermined in my mind, by the hopping and bopping around by his side of the Aprilia garage when it was announced that Binder had been demoted a place. I guess that's how passionate people should react, but celebrating ill-gotten podiums (this seems to be the interpretation of most fans) is not great for business or for favorability ratings.

Another really frustrating weekend for Vinales who chucked it down the road after setting back to back fastest laps. To me Vinales is an underachieving raw talent, like Hayden, which makes him a compelling figure. Can he put it all together? You never know, and since he's chasing a bit of history at Aprilia, his semi-monthly saga has additional meaning. Ultimately though he isn't putting it together, and he's not even grabbing enough headlines to make a business case for retaining him as a rider. I hope he stays with the Aprilia factory team, but they will need a heavy-hitter to replace Aleix and keep the team afloat. I don't think Mav can lead the team.

Saddest weekend goes to Miller, imo. He looked keen, but after getting overtaken by Maverick in Turn 1, he tried to pull the KTM back for the undercut, and the front just folded on him. His retirement contained two levels of tragedy. First, he hasn't gotten the results this season, besides and excellent weekend at Jerez. Plus, he and the fans are faced with the possibility (reality) than attempting an undercut after a block pass is perhaps less viable than in previous seasons. It looked like all he did was try to square a wide apex aggressively so he could fire the bike into Turn 2, and the Michelin front waved the white flag.

I haven't read the rider quotes or debriefs yet. Why did Zarco run over to Fabio? French connection? The official feed claimed that Zarco hit him on the outside, but it seems somewhat unlikely that Zarco would be turning a tighter radius at higher speed on the outside. Maybe Zarco felt guilty for being on the outside as Fabio let the bike run wide on the corner exit?

mylexicon said:

I haven't read the rider quotes or debriefs yet. Why did Zarco run over to Fabio? French connection? The official feed claimed that Zarco hit him on the outside, but it seems somewhat unlikely that Zarco would be turning a tighter radius at higher speed on the outside. Maybe Zarco felt guilty for being on the outside as Fabio let the bike run wide on the corner exit?

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Zarco:

“I could see Fabio struggling a lot, so I tried to overtake him in turn 1, but he crossed the line and then his bike was moving a lot in turn 6. So I prepared to be quite fast in turn 7 and then try to overtake him in turn 8.
“But the moment I opened the throttle he lost the front. I was so close to him that I could not avoid the bike and we crashed pretty fast. We both walked away. But it seems he got the injury on the left elbow and still the left foot is painful for him.”

Also Quarts got injured but thinks he'll be fine by the next GP.

MichaelBolton said:

Zarco:

“I could see Fabio struggling a lot, so I tried to overtake him in turn 1, but he crossed the line and then his bike was moving a lot in turn 6. So I prepared to be quite fast in turn 7 and then try to overtake him in turn 8.
“But the moment I opened the throttle he lost the front. I was so close to him that I could not avoid the bike and we crashed pretty fast. We both walked away. But it seems he got the injury on the left elbow and still the left foot is painful for him.”

Also Quarts got injured but thinks he'll be fine by the next GP.

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Thanks!

Next GP weekend isn't until August 4th. Fabio has time to heal.

MichaelBolton said:

A. Márquez was more than 5 seconds behind anyway.

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Doesn't matter, rules are rules. Alex Marquez was far enough ahead of the next placed rider for it to not affect his position, but he still got a LLP.

While I agree it made no difference to his finishing position, he should have still been issued a penalty if you are being consistent with the rules.

#22 said:

Doesn't matter, rules are rules. Alex Marquez was far enough ahead of the next placed rider for it to not affect his position, but he still got a LLP.

While I agree it made no difference to his finishing position, he should have still been issued a penalty if you are being consistent with the rules.

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They are being consistent, constantly inconsistent.

Fabio has mentioned he is getting surgery tomorrow.

Cannot add to all of the insightful posts prior to this. All I can say is I hope the 2nd half of the season sees Binder at the sharp end of the stick more often. It was said earlier but I'll put my spin on it. Fabio gets a sprint podium due to Binder's penalty and his reaction? (paraphrase) "Yes, feeling happy but also feeling sorry for Brad because it happened to me so I know how he feels." After Binder's BS penalty in the race, Aleix is jumping all over his bike and his box is going nuts. I know Aleix wears his emotions on his sleeve, and I'm not a racer but as a fan I like Fabio's style much better. That said, Aleix did ride one heck of a race.