MotoGP: Dutch TT Preview: Twinned with Tavullia

The Dutch TT at Assen is the longest serving GP in the entire history of the Motorcycle Grand Prix championship and every year, we see races that live up to such a momentous occasion. 2018 is set to be no different across all classes, but in MotoGP itself, the title race is starting to heat up. With the dynamics of Jorge Lorenzo on a charge, Valentino Rossi on a consistent run and Marc Marquez not having it all his own way in the last two races, we head to Assen with much anticipation of what really could be the best race of the season. A thriller awaits us.

Marc Marquez is leading the championship charge but it has not been the dominant Marquez in the last couple of races that we have come to know. A crash at Mugello and a distant 2nd at Catalunya mean that young Marc’s lead has been whittled away from 36 points to 27 – over nemesis Valentino Rossi. Reigning champion and championship designate, Marquez could really do with a win at Assen to reassert himself as the clear leader of the championship. His record at Assen is superb, never finishing off the podium, however just one of them has been a win – back in 2014. With him leading the championship from Valentino Rossi, who’d bet against a 2015 replica on Sunday?

Valentino Rossi is Mr. Assen. Ten wins across all classes and eight wins in the premier class – of which three have come from the previous five – The Doctor has to be the favourite come Sunday. An ill-handling Yamaha has been on the podium in the last three races under Rossi but now we come to a track of which he absolutely loves. Some of Valentino’s best wins have come at the circuit, whether they be in 2009 for his 100th win, in 2015 in the battle with Marquez or in 2007 when he came from the fourth row of the grid to win. Rossi has done it every single way at Assen and with good form coming into the round, he may well have a chance at the top step of the podium. Should he manage that, then the gap between him and Marquez will come down to under a race win’s worth of points. If Rossi does delight the Dutch audience, it will also be the first time since Misano in 2008 and 2009 that he has won at the same circuit for two straight seasons.

Maverick Vinales is 11 points further back from Valentino Rossi in 3rd place in the standings. We need to be honest about Vinales’ season so far; it has been a total disaster. Whilst still 3rd and 38 points off the top slot, 2018 has yielded just one podium for the Spanish rider and he hasn’t had a podium in Europe since Silverstone last season. His last top five in Europe was at Aragon last September and at Assen last year, Vinales crashed out of the race. His best result at the the Dutch circuit is a 9th on the Suzuki in 2016 but he does have two wins to his name from the Moto3 class. Vinales’ season must change at Assen, otherwise – surely – his championship challenge will have failed by the end of the first half of the season.

Johann Zarco makes it three Yamahas chasing Marquez for the title lead – despite all of the Japanese manufacturer’s issues. The French revelation has been somewhat subdued since his crash out of 2nd at his home round in May but Zarco was on pole at Assen last year. The double Moto2 champion is just four points off the bronze-medal position in the championship and is more than capable of beating Vinales. Assen could be the place where Johann comes back alive. Having run up the front end at the circuit last season until a strange decision to pit for wet tyres led to him finishing 14th, Zarco has a win to his name at Assen, from his 2015 Moto2 season. Could Zarco regain his form?

Danilo Petrucci is top Ducati in the championship, just another two points further back in 5th. Petrucci came close to winning his first MotoGP race at the track last year, beaten only by Valentino Rossi. ‘Petrux’ is looking to be one of the most consistent riders this season, yet to crash or retire from a race. A finish this weekend would make it 10 consecutive finishes in the top class. Whilst being 2nd at Assen last year, he also set the fastest lap at the track in 2016, so he could turn on the Pramac Ducati coals and prove to the doubters that he deserves his hard-fought job at Factory Ducati. Can Petrucci finally take that elusive first MotoGP win?

Cal Crutchlow is flying the British flag proudly in 6th place, as well as being the next best Honda besides young Marquez. The British ace has finished six of the last eight races inside the top ten and comes to Assen with good form at the track, with a fourth last season and sole podium back in 2013. Besides 2011 and 2016, Crutchlow has finished every one of his Dutch Grand Prix in the top ten and he may well be a podium threat again this season. The last time Crutchlow was fourth in a race, he went on to win the next one (Qatar/Argentina this year). Can Cal do the business in front of a packed Assen venue?

Jorge Lorenzo is on 66 points and in joint 7th place in the championship with his Factory Ducati teammate, Andrea Dovizioso. With three race wins between them, you’d expect them to be higher up the championship standings but inconsistency has led to their relatively poor positions. For Jorge Lorenzo, he is looking for his third win on the spin, something that hasn’t happened since he won four on the bounce in 2015, at Jerez, Le Mans, Mugello and Catalunya – although his run ended at Assen. For Dovizioso, it has been a disastrous series of events with just one finish from the last four. And if that wasn’t bad enough, Dovi hasn’t scored a podium at Assen since 2014 and has never won there before. Having said that, he is the only rider on the grid to have achieved a podium at Assen on three makes of motorcycle.

The other Repsol Honda of Dani Pedrosa is languishing in 11th overall in the championship, with him still looking for his first podium. If form was to suggest anything, it would be that it may not come at Assen, having not been on the rostrum since his 3rd place in 2014. What may be even more worrying for Pedrosa is the fact that he hasn’t finished the last two Dutch TTs inside the top ten. Pedrosa’s future is also not confirmed yet, with rumours speculating that he will be onboard a Petronas Yamaha next season, undoubtedly impacting on his on-track performance. Pedrosa has not finished two consecutive races in the points since Phillip Island and Sepang last season and that is something he will want to turn around for this weekend.

Suzuki have had a difficult time of late, with a tricky race at Catalunya compounding their utter misery. Iannone is 9th in the championship and looking to take his first win for the manufacturer, whereas Alex Rins is down in 12th place overall, having crashed out of more races than he has finished in. Suzuki qualified on the front row at Assen in 2015 with Aleix Espargaro but their last win as a manufacturer at Assen was with Kevin Schwantz in 1993. Apart from his rookie season, Iannone has finished inside the top ten at Assen in every year and won the 2010 Moto2 race. Can he crack the podium this weekend?

Aprilia are still struggling somewhat abysmally, with Aleix Espargaro looking like the only rider capable of putting the bike inside the top ten. Aleix was 10th at the circuit last season but hasn’t scored points in the last two races this season. His best result at Assen is 4th, from 2014. Scott Redding has been slowly chipping away and picked up points last time out at Catalunya. If he scores points again this weekend, it’ll be his first back-to-back points scoring rides since Phillip Island and Sepang last year.

KTM must be getting bored of 11th by now? Having finished every race of the season – apart from Losail – Pol Espargaro has been 11th on five occasions, including the last four races! His best result at Assen in the premier class is fourth from 2016. For KTM last season, he was 11th – something KTM will probably be getting a nervous twitch over. Bradley Smith comes into the Assen weekend off the back of a retirement at Catalunya. He hasn’t had a back-to-back DNF since his Moto2 days, at the Sachsenring and Brno in 2011! He will want to get inside the top ten at Assen, where his best result has been a 7th.

Onto the rest of the Independent teams and Jack Miller – who suffered his second DNF on the bounce at Catalunya – looking to bounce back at a track he loves. The Australian took his first – and so far only – MotoGP win at Assen in a thrilling 2016 race and was a hearty 6th last year. Miller has never crashed out of three consecutive races and will hope that he doesn’t suffer that fate. If he was able to replicate his success of 2016, it’d be Ducati’s first win at the track since 2008, with Casey Stoner.

Hafizh Syahrin is having a stellar start to his MotoGP campaign, despite crashing rather awkwardly out of proceedings at Catalunya a fortnight ago. The Malaysian is looking to return to the top ten at Assen, having been 8th at the circuit last year in Moto2 – which at the time was his best result of the season.

Takaaki Nakagami has happy memories of Assen, as his first Moto2 victory came at the circuit in 2016, when it was red flagged due to rain. The Japanese rookie hasn’t scored points since Le Mans when he was 15th and will be looking to get to the top ten for the first time in his premier class career.

Avintia Ducati are continuing their form, despite Tito Rabat retiring from the Catalunya race with a bonfire. Rabat has finished 11th and 12th in 2016 and 2017 in MotoGP at Assen and could well break into that crucial top ten, whereas Xavier Simeon is still looking for his first points of the year on a two year old motorcycle. Simeon was 7th at Assen in Moto2 last year, which was his best result of the season.

Once more, Alvaro Bautista is flying the flag for the Angel Nieto Ducati team. The popular Spaniard hasn’t got the greatest of form at Assen, finishing just four races in the premier class at the track – of which a best is 7th. Bautista hasn’t scored points at the track since he was 7th in 2014 but he did achieve his best qualifying at the circuit last year, with 7th. With so many 7th place mentions, we may as well bring in his teammate, Karel Abraham, who was 7th in the race last year – which remains his joint best MotoGP class result!

Marc VDS Honda are the last team on the preview list, with their riders Franco Morbidelli and Tom Luthi in search of points at Assen. Morbidelli misses the race through injury, whereas teammate Tom Luthi still hasn’t scored points and one would imagine that his ride will be under threat for 2019. Luthi was 2nd to Morbidelli in the Moto2 race at Assen last season but has never won at the circuit. Marc VDS may well be in for a tricky weekend.