MotoGP 2025: TT Assen Friday rundown

Written by: Christopher Conway

Friday practice at the Dutch Grand Prix got off to an exciting start with possibly the most exciting session of the season during Practice 2. A greasy track led to multiple drivers taking a tumble through the gravel.

Practice 1

Marc Marquez finished top of the session despite a high side at Turn 15. The Spaniard suffered a scary moment with 37 minutes left in the session at Ramshoek, and looked to be in some discomfort, grabbing his left hand after getting back to his feet.

Ducati Team Manager Davide Tardozzi confirmed that the rider of the #93 experienced a slight pain in his left elbow, and the crash may have been caused by Marquez downshifting too quickly.

Rounding out the top three was Maverick Viñales on the Red Bull KTM Tech 3 and Marco Bezzecchi on the Aprilia, leaving three manufacturers at the top of the times after the first practice session.  

Ducati Struggling? Credit: Michelin Motorsport X

Practice 2

Unlike the first session, there was plenty of chaos on track, with five riders crashing out within the first 10 minutes. Alex Marquez crashed first, followed by Fermin Aldeguer, Johann Zarco, Enea Bastianini, and Aleix Espargaro.

With around 32 minutes left in the session, Ai Ogura had a dramatic high side, in which the Trackhouse caught fire, bringing out the first red flag. Thankfully, the rider of the #79 was on his feet after the incident.

The second red flag of the session came with 13 minutes to go, following a heavy fall by Lorenzo Savadori at Stekkenwal; fortunately, Savadori was avoided by the following pack and unharmed. 

Dramatically, Marc Marquez ended the session in the gravel following a slide to the gravel. Marquez was slow to get to his feet, but he managed to make it back to the garage.

Fabio Quartararo in the Yamaha topped the session, followed by Alex Marquez, who made up for his earlier mistake, and Pedro Acosta rounded out the top three. Meaning we had three different manufacturers in the top three again.

The top 10 automatically qualify for Qualifying 2 following a chaotic Free Practice 2 with riders such as Raul Fernandez by the smallest of margins, finishing behind Johann Zarco by .001 of a second.

This sets up for an exciting Qualifying 1 session in the morning with a variety of riders aiming to finish in the top 2 to qualify for the all-important Qualifying 2 tomorrow.