ASSEN, Netherlands — Marc Marquez admitted his primary objective at the Dutch Grand Prix was simply to leave Assen without aggravating his physical condition after the factory Ducati rider endured another difficult weekend at one of the most demanding circuits on the MotoGP calendar.
Marquez crossed the finish line in seventh after struggling for pace throughout Sunday’s race, having also finished seventh in Saturday’s sprint. Although he remained outside the leading battle, the Spaniard emerged from the weekend still firmly in championship contention after Marco Bezzecchi crashed out and Jorge Martin could manage only third place.
The six-time MotoGP world champion arrived in the Netherlands expecting a difficult challenge, describing Assen’s fast, flowing right-hand corners as particularly unsuited to his current physical limitations.
“I went into the race knowing my place was to finish sixth, seventh or eighth,” Marquez said afterward. “Looking at the race, maybe the maximum was fifth place, but in the end we finished seventh.”
Despite the result, Marquez viewed the weekend as a success because he avoided another injury setback.
“The good thing is that we escaped from Holland without injuries,” he said. “That was my main target.”
Marquez was among the few riders to choose the soft rear tire, explaining that the decision reflected his physical condition rather than outright race strategy.
He said he lacked the strength to fully exploit the medium rear tire over a full race distance and instead opted for a setup that allowed him to maximize performance over individual laps.
“I don’t have the physical condition to take the maximum potential from the tire over the laps,” Marquez said. “So I decided I would ride the bike more calmly and push on single laps. For that, the soft rear was the better option.”
One of the race’s most controversial moments came when VR46 Ducati rider Fabio Di Giannantonio attempted an aggressive overtake that forced Marquez to run through the final chicane. Di Giannantonio later received a long-lap penalty for exceeding track limits after cutting the chicane but still recovered to finish fourth.
The incident inevitably drew comparisons with Marquez’s infamous clash with Valentino Rossi at Sepang in 2015, though Marquez dismissed suggestions the situations were comparable.
“In the end it was a race incident,” he said. “Race Direction said it was a race incident. Di Giannantonio got penalized, but not because of the contact. He was penalized because he cut the chicane.”
Marquez then added with a smile, “At least in 2015, I did the chicane.”
Although he remains 40 points behind championship leader Jorge Martin after the Dutch round, Marquez believes the title fight remains wide open, with several riders capable of challenging for victories throughout the remainder of the season.
“I don’t feel like I’m the strongest one, and I’m not the fastest one,” Marquez said. “But nobody wants to be only the fastest one.”
“At the moment, there are five names in the championship fighting at every race, and that’s what makes it so competitive.”
