Lecuona roars into top ten contention in Assen
An incredible race from Iker Lecuona demonstrated brilliant potential after a weekend of constant improvements, his charge ultimately cut short.
Ahead of Sunday’s Dutch Grand Prix, it was announced that Marc Marquez had been declared unfit as a result of the injuries sustained at the German GP last week, which had been aggravated further in Assen. This left Iker Lecuona as the lone Repsol Honda Team rider, the #27 keenly focused on the task ahead.
Having worked with the Repsol Honda Team and HRC engineers overnight, Lecuona entered the 26-lap race with ever-growing confidence. He stayed calmed in the first few corners before attacking and worked to stay with a sizable group battling for the points. Tricky conditions caught out a number of riders ahead but the stand-in Repsol Honda Team rider continued ahead with inch-perfect consistency on the Honda RC213V.
He soon found himself battling with Franco Morbidelli for the top ten. Unfortunately, heartbreak would follow soon after as a technical issue ended his race. Initially disappointed, Lecuona and the entire Repsol Honda Team leave the weekend impressed with the efforts of the 23-year-old.
MotoGP’s mid-season Summer Break now begins, a chance for riders and mechanics to rest and recover as HRC’s engineers continue important development work back in Japan. The World Championship will resume on August 04 with the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Iker Lecuona
“From Jerez to here was a big improvement in how I felt with the bike. Overall we have had a great weekend, constantly getting faster and improving each time we left the garage. The race we were having today was really good, I was careful at the start and avoided any problems. After this I was able to settle into my own pace and I was able to put my best on track, my confidence was growing with each lap and I was feeling really good. Finally, I was fighting for the top ten and it felt great to be there. I want to thank the entire Repsol Honda Team for their work this weekend.”
Marc Marquez
“We arrived here in a difficult condition and it only worsened as the weekend went on. Last night I suffered a lot trying to sleep, when I woke up the pain was very high and I went straight to the medical center. Checks revealed the break in the rib had shifted so we had to miss the race. Now is the time to rest and recover and come back after the summer break fit and ready to keep working.”
Dutch Grand Prix Results
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bagnaia Francesco | 1 | ITA | 25 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati | 40'37.640 |
| 2 | Bezzecchi Marco | 72 | ITA | 20 | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati | 1.223 |
| 3 | Espargaro Aleix | 41 | SPA | 16 | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia | 1.925 |
| 4 | Binder Brad | 33 | RSA | 13 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 1.528 |
| 5 | Martin Jorge | 89 | SPA | 11 | Pramac Racing | Ducati | 1.934 |
| 6 | Marquez Alex | 73 | SPA | 10 | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati | 12.437 |
| 7 | Marini Luca | 10 | ITA | 9 | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati | 14.174 |
| 8 | Nakagami Takaaki | 30 | JPN | 8 | LCR Honda | Honda | 14.616 |
| 9 | Morbidelli Franco | 21 | ITA | 7 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 29.335 |
| 10 | Fernandez Augusto | 37 | SPA | 6 | Tech3 GASGAS Factory Racing | KTM | 33.736 |
| 11 | Savadori Lorenzo | 32 | ITA | 5 | Aprilia Racing Test Team | Aprilia | 35.084 |
| 12 | Fernandez Raul | 25 | SPA | 4 | RNF MotoGP Team | Aprilia | 39.622 |
| 13 | Bradl Stefan | 6 | GER | 3 | LCR Honda | Honda | 42.504 |
| 14 | Folger Jonas | 94 | GER | 2 | Tech3 GASGAS Factory Racing | KTM | 45.609 |
| 15 | Di Giannantonio Fabio | 49 | ITA | DNF | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati | DNF |
| 16 | Lecuona Iker | 27 | SPA | DNF | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | DNF |
| 17 | Oliveira Miguel | 88 | POR | DNF | RNF MotoGP Team | Aprilia | DNF |
| 18 | Bastianini Enea | 23 | ITA | DNF | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati | DNF |
| 19 | Vinales Maverick | 12 | SPA | DNF | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia | DNF |
| 20 | Zarco Johann | 5 | FRA | DNF | Pramac Racing | Ducati | DNF |
| 21 | Quartararo Fabio | 20 | FRA | DNF | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | DNF |
| 22 | Miller Jack | 43 | AUS | DNF | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | DNF |
Location Information
Assen is the only venue to have held a round of the Motorcycle World Championship every year since its creation in 1949. The circuit was purpose built for the Dutch TT in 1955, with previous events having been held on public roads. The track is narrow, with rapid changes in… read more.
| Length | 4.542 kilometres / 2.822 miles |
| Width | 14 metres |
| Left corners | 6 |
| Right corners | 12 |
| Longest straight | 0.487 kilometres / 0.303 miles |
| Constructed | 1955 |
| Modified | 2012 |
TT Circuit Assen, De Haar, Assen, The Netherlands - View in Google Maps
Records
| Pole Position | 1m 31.504s (178.6km/h) Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati, 2022) |
| Race Lap | 1m 32.500s (176.7km/h) Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia, 2022) |
| Race Time | 40m 25.205s (175.2km/h) Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati, 2022) |
| 2023 Race Winner | Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) |
| 2023 Sprint Winner | Marco Bezzecchi (Ducati) |
