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- Marc Marquez holds 4 wins at Assen from his last 5 visits.
- Dani Pedrosa has placed on the podium at the Dutch TT on 7 occasions.
- Maria Herrera took her first World Championship point at the last round in Catalonia.
After placing on the podium last season in a wet/dry race, Marquez and Pedrosa return to a circuit at which the Repsol Moto3 riders have never competed.
The legendary Assen circuit will host the eighth round of the MotoGP season this weekend. As tradition dictates, the race will take place on Saturday rather than Sunday. Marc Marquez returns to a track where he has four wins from his last five visits. Meanwhile, Dani Pedrosa – increasingly moving towards full fitness after his left forearm surgery – will try to continue the progress he showed at the last Grand Prix.
After visiting the familiar Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Fabio Quartararo, Jorge Navarro and Maria Herrera are back to the situation of riding at an unfamiliar circuit this weekend. The trio will have to study the track and learn it from the first free practice session on Thursday. Navarro comes into the round after taking his best result in the World Championship to date, and Herrera has been boosted by taking her first Grand Prix point in Barcelona.
Marc Marquez
“Obviously I’m disappointed to have crashed out of my home race in Catalunya, but we’ve put that behind us now as we head to Assen. It’s a shame we couldn’t make the most out of the post-race test on Monday, but it’s the same for everyone. Assen is a track I like – even if it doesn’t necessarily suit our bike the best. As always we will have to work hard from Friday morning and hope to make a step with the bike settings. The weather is always unpredictable and this usually plays a part in the weekend, so we will have to keep an eye on it!”
Dani Pedrosa
“I was really happy to step back on the podium in Barcelona, it’s just a shame we couldn’t do much on the Monday during the test, due to the bad weather. The arm is feeling better and better each time I ride and now we need to work on the bike to improve our feeling. As we all know, the weather in Assen is usually a critical point so we must be sure to make the most of any dry track time! I like the track but it’s important to find a good setting and feeling with the tyres as there are a few very fast corners.”
Fabio Quartararo
“I go to Holland excited, because after the test last week at MotorLand Aragon I am even more eager to do well and enjoy myself. I’ve never ridden there but, as we have done before this season at circuits I don’t know well, I have watched videos and played video games. Once I get there I will focus on learning lines from the riders who have already ridden at Assen. Gradually we will learn the track well. I like the circuit, especially the last part -which is fast corners ending with braking to enter the chicane.”
Jorge Navarro
“We are going to a circuit steeped in history – ‘The Cathedral’ – and I am very excited about racing there. We arrive after two good races and a positive test in Aragon last week, so we have to continue working like before. We are taking steps forward and learning as much as possible, race-by-race. It is a totally new circuit for us, but these good feelings we have give us the security to face the challenge.”
Maria Herrera
“Assen is a new circuit for me. I am not familiar with it and I’ll have to learn it well on Wednesday before we start riding. Getting into the points at the last race in Catalonia gives me an extra motivation to get the best result possible. We have been working very well for several and I know what I can do, but I’ll have to work hard in the Netherlands and at all tracks that I do not yet know.”
