The Ducati Lenovo Team starred in a spectacular Brembo Grand Prix of Italy race at the ‘Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello’. Marc Márquez took the win — the 93rd of his MotoGP career (across all classes). Francesco Bagnaia crossed the line in fourth place.

After a hectic early part of the race, with many position changes involving Bagnaia and Alex Márquez, Marc Márquez took the lead on lap nine and managed the race masterfully to the chequered flag. Bagnaia showed excellent form early on, but a near-crash at the end of lap five cost him the lead. In the closing stages, Pecco was overtaken by Fabio Di Giannantonio for third place.

At the end of the ninth Grand Prix of the season, Marc Márquez increases his tally to 270 points, with a 40-point lead over Alex Márquez. Francesco Bagnaia sits third, 110 points behind his teammate. The Ducati Lenovo Team remains at the top of the teams’ standings (430 points), while Ducati continues to lead the manufacturers’ standings (319 points).

The Ducati Lenovo Team will resume proceedings on Friday at the TT Circuit Assen for the tenth Grand Prix of the season.

Marc Márquez (#93 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 1st
“At the start of the race, I tried to manage tyre wear so I wouldn’t compromise things too early. Every time I tried to control the situation, Pecco came back on the attack. He was braking very hard and very late, while I was focusing more on corner speed. When Alex took the lead, I knew it was time to start pushing, because he had a really strong pace. Track conditions were quite tricky today, and maintaining a very fast rhythm was risky. If anyone had closed the gap, plan B was simply to bring the bike home.”

Francesco Bagnaia (#63 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 4th
“Today, in front of this incredible crowd, I gave it everything. When I tried to set the pace at the front, I nearly crashed at the final corner. Unfortunately, when the front-end grip drops, I don’t have enough support and I struggle more. I need to stay a few tenths behind the rider in front, then quickly close the gap and try a pass — otherwise I risk losing the front. I have to accept that this is the situation for now and keep working with the team to find a solution, while always giving it my all.”

Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager)
“We’re extremely happy to witness an all-Ducati top four here at Mugello. It was a spectacular race, especially during the first five or six laps — a thrilling start that really tested my emotions. Congratulations to Marc for this fantastic win, which is dedicated to all Ducatisti. It was also great to see Pecco leading early on. From our side, we’ll continue to give him our full support so he can take that final step he’s still missing.”


>>>>>>>>>Mugello often delivers some magic and in 2025, it didn’t fail to deliver more. Some all-time great opening laps saw the three heavyweights at the top of the title race go bar to bar in an epic start to the Brembo Italian GP. Having to work hard for a 93rd win across all classes but securing it nonetheless and taking Ducati to victory at home, Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) fended off Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) and Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team), whilst a late burst from Fabio Di Giannantonio saw him pick Pecco’s pocket for P3 on the penultimate lap.

LET BATTLE COMMENCE: the best start to any GP in 2025… so far!
As the lights went out, it was a drag race between Marc Marquez and Bagnaia down towards San Donato for the first time, initially going to the #93 before his teammate stormed back through at Turn 2 and led the opening lap of his home Grand Prix. Lap 2 and it was absolutely head-to-head – the battle we all hoped for coming into 2025 burst into life. Marc Marquez hit the front again at Turn 1 and held position ahead of his teammate, who even had a look at Turn 6 but thought better of it. On Lap 3 it was Bagnaia’s turn to retaliate at Turn 1 but the #93 got under his teammate, only for the #63 bash his way back into the lead for Turn 2. Marc Marquez barrelled back through two apexes later but Pecco wasn’t done yet, aiming to turn it tight at Turn 5. But there, he kissed the rear end of the #93 Ducati ahead, allowing Alex Marquez through and dropping to P3.

Lap 4 was just as explosive as Bagnaia got himself back into second round Turn 1 before pouncing on Marc Marquez immediately at Turn 2 in a carbon-copy of his earlier move. He made that stick, and held the lead until Marc Marquez tried again at Turn 1 but headed in deep. Bagnaia slipped back through and held the #93 off for the rest of the lap until it almost all came undone for the #63 at the final corner – forced into an incredible front-end save.

He stayed in it but dropped back to second, and that allowed Alex Marquez to clamber onto the back of the two factory machines. Three-abreast into San Donato, Alex Marquez briefly led but Bagnaia took it back again, before the #73 attacked round Turn 3 to take the lead. From there, he got the hammer seriously down – putting some daylight behind the Gresini nearly immediately.

MAKING IT STICK: Marc Marquez takes over as Viñales and Morbidelli clash
Into Lap 7, the #93 pounced again, this time back into P2 as Bagnaia was now forced to take third for the time being. Two laps later, Marc Marquez then struck for the lead as he chipped his brother’s advantage back down and pounced.

Behind, there was big drama in the battle for fourth, and potentially what could have been the battle for the podium. Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech3) was taken out by Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) as the Italian made contact on the way through, spelling the end of Viñales’ Italian GP and leaving a bitter taste after a strong Sprint. Morbidelli was handed a Long Lap Penalty, which he then also served incorrectly and therefore, issued another. This promoted his teammate Fabio Di Giannantonio into P4, which would go on to have consequences.

FIGHTS DOWN THE FIELD: comebacks, drop backs and heroics
More bad luck struck down field, this time for Jack Miller (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP), who retired with a clutch problem. Meanwhile, Morbidelli’s Grand Prix, after two Long Laps, was now a battle with Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse MotoGP Team), with the Spaniard having his strongest weekend of the season. Further up the road and fellow Aprilia rider Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing) had worked his way into the top five amidst the incidents ahead of him, whilst the battle between top KTM was now between Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and teammate Pedro Acosta, something that went Acosta’s way with five laps to go at Turn 1.

Just behind the all-orange battle, Ai Ogura’s (Trackhouse Racing MotoGP) Grand Prix was also noteworthy, moving from 21st on the grid into the top ten with four laps remaining as he returns from injury. Dropping out of the top ten in a tricky end to the GP, it wasn’t the Sunday Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) had dreamt of.

CHEQUERED FLAG: Ducati’s streak continues at Mugello
Back in the podium scrap and with brothers Marc and Alex now a settled P1 and P2 respectively, it was a stellar ride from Di Giannantonio to decide the final step on the podium. With a late turn of searing pace, the #49 managed to hunt down a struggling Bagnaia and then got ahead of him at Turn 6. He wasn’t giving up on P2 either, hunting down the #73 and coming up only just short. As Marc Marquez crossed the line to take an incredible 93rd win across all classes, Alex Marquez took second by a matter of metres as Diggia’s charge was forced to stop at P3.

Bagnaia takes fourth after that stunning first few laps some him come up short in the final few, a difficult result for the much-decorated home hero. Fellow home hero Bezzecchi takes fifth for Aprilia Racing on their home turf too, ahead of Morbidelli in P6 after his adventures.

It was a joint-best of 2025 for Fernandez in seventh, and after Viñales’ DNF, Acosta won the battle for top KTM honours ahead of teammate Binder, with Ogura rounding out the top ten. Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) secured 11th, whilst Fermin Aldeguer (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) fought back to 12th after a hair-raising moment at Turn 1 on the third lap that had sent him to the back. Miguel Oliveira (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP) was the top Yamaha in 13th whilst dropping from P4 to P14, it was a struggle for Quartararo, one place ahead of his teammate Alex Rins.Oliveira Finishes 13th as Top Yamaha in Tough Italian GP at Mugello Circuit, Miller Retires with Technical Issue

After a Sunday of struggle, Miguel Oliveira brought home a 13th-place finish in the Italian GP, becoming the top Yamaha rider across the line with its YZR-M1 painted in a special livery for the 10th anniversary of title sponsor Prima Assicurazioni. The Portuguese rider salvaged what he could for the Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP team in a race marked by extreme conditions. Meanwhile, a technical issue forced teammate Jack Miller to retire. There‘s no time to rest — the Dutch GP at Assen is already set for this coming weekend, marking Round 10 of the MotoGP World Championship.
Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP

It wasn‘t the Grand Prix that Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP had hoped for, in a special race for the team, which was racing with a special livery for the 10th anniversary of its title sponsor, Prima Assicurazioni. The extreme weather conditions that persisted all weekend at Mugello — with ambient temperatures constantly over 30°C and track temperatures hitting 50°C — made things particularly challenging for Miguel Oliveira and Jack Miller, with the YZR-M1 struggling to perform at its best under these circumstances.

For Miller, any chance of mounting a comeback from 13th on the grid was then wiped out by a clutch issue that forced him to retire on lap 10 while riding on the edge of the points. Oliveira also faced a complicated race, having to wrestle with severe vibrations that made riding extremely difficult. Still, gritting his teeth, the Portuguese rider fought to the end and managed to overtake Fabio Quartararo right on the final straight to finish 13th — and first among the Yamaha riders.

With 9 of 22 races completed, Miller sits 19th in the overall standings with 31 points, while Oliveira is 23rd with 6 points. In the team standings, Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP holds 11th place with 40 points.

The team now packs up and heads straight to Assen for the Dutch GP at the iconic TT Circuit this weekend.

GINO BORSOI
Team Director, Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP
“It was a very difficult weekend — complicated right from the first day. That said, I want to highlight Miguel‘s strong race, which gives me hope for the future. Unfortunately, Jack was affected by a technical issue that forced him to retire. We definitely need to improve, especially in these high-temperature conditions. Still, I believe we‘ve come away with a better understanding of how to handle these situations, and I‘m confident that this experience will help us take a step forward.”

MIGUEL OLIVEIRA
Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP Rider
“Being the first Yamaha across the line makes it a little less disappointing, but honestly, the result and the gap to the front — 26 seconds — is what really matters, and it‘s too much. We lacked performance, we lacked pace, and managing the bike‘s vibrations was tough. The heat and the difficulty in overtaking made things nearly impossible. Just staying with the group in front meant pushing the tires to the limit, with no chance to manage anything. It was a tough race, but it is what it is. We‘ll analyze everything and aim to improve for Assen.”

JACK MILLER
Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP Rider
“Right from the start, the clutch basically burned itself out as soon as I let it go — even though my launch was good. For the first three laps it was slipping badly. I was short-shifting everywhere, trying to bring it back to life. It recovered somewhat, but every time I hit a bump, it felt like a kick and threw me wide. I got passed by everyone, and after a contact with someone on the first lap, I also lost a wing, which had me wheeling all over the place. Then we had a fuel issue that made the bike even more aggressive. At that point, it was basically unrideable. I tried to keep going, but in the end, I had to retire. It was a tough one, but we‘ll reset and look ahead.”Double top ten slots for Red Bull KTM after dramatic Italian MotoGP™ Grand Prix
MotoGP 2025 - Round 09 of 22, Mugello Circuit, Italy – Race

The high-speed Autodromo Mugello is not for the faint-hearted but Pedro Acosta and Brad Binder twisted the throttles hard of the Red Bull KTM RC16s to score 8th and 9th places at the ninth round of 2025 MotoGP. Maverick Viñales was in podium contention until being hit out of 4th at almost mid-race distance. The KTM GP Academy prospered once more thanks to Alvaro Carpe who was only 0.006 away from victory in Moto3™.


The first grand prix of the first double-header on the 2025 MotoGP slate took the series to the fast, hot and busy climes of Mugello: the atmospheric and spectacular site for the Italian round of the world championship since 1994. 15 corners and 5.2km of sweeps and drops had been the scene of KTM’s record-setting MotoGP top speed of 366.1 kmph in 2023 and 2024 hosted a 23-lap affair on Sunday afternoon. The Red Bull KTM RC16s starting from the second, third, fifth and six rows of the grid.


Maverick Viñales was the best qualifier in 5th and rode to a strong 4th place in Saturday’s Sprint. The former Grand Prix winner slotted into the front-running pack of five riders eying a podium trophy but he was hit out of 4th place after 9 laps. The onus then fell to Pedro Acosta and a determined Brad Binder in the lower half of the top ten. The teammates swapped track space and positions and crossed the line almost together in 8th and 9th respectively. Enea Bastianini fell on the final corner of the opening lap.

There is little respite for MotoGP this week with round ten involving a trip to one of the oldest courses on the calendar. The TT Circuit Assen stages the Dutch Grand Prix next weekend where the venue will celebrate its centenary.

Pedro Acosta, 8th and 8th in the championship standings: “Tough race. The wrong choice with the tires. I was struggling to turn. The only fun thing was the battle with Brad. I could see he could turn the bike. It was super-nice and I enjoyed that. We’ll have to see how we can do in Assen.”

Brad Binder, 9th and 13th in the championship standings: “I got a decent start but didn’t really have the pace to go with the next group in front. I knew it was important to make the rear tire last until the end and also guard the front because it was very hot and I was surrounded by riders. I didn’t want it to tuck. It was a tricky race and I’m glad to finish. It’s by no means what I wanted but at least it’s a starting point. Importantly I found out what we need to finish for next week, and if we can get a little bit more stability it will be very beneficial.”

Maverick Viñales, DNF and 11th in the championship standings:“A really positive weekend, to be honest. We are getting closer and closer. I was feeling great in the race and really controlling the rear tire. Unfortunately a rider touched me and I crashed, and this is part of racing. I could not finish but we have to be happy because we are fighting for the top positions. The important thing is to continue in this way and be nearer the front as quickly as possible. We are growing well.”

Enea Bastianini, DNF and 16th in the championship standings: “One of the shortest races of my life! My start was good and I was close to the top ten and I tried to push. I lost time in the previous section and tried to make it up in the final corner but the front closed. It was important to make a good result both for me and the team because we were much faster this weekend and competitive in each session. This was one of the better GPs of the year and today could have been very good. It would have been useful for morale but, anyway, we learned a lot and we’ll be able to put this into the package. We’ll see for next time.”

Aki Ajo, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager: “For sure we expected results today and disappointment comes with two crashes. Yes, we had two top ten finishes and race-by-race we are making progress and improvements. I’m sure we will get our reward in the coming GPs because there are positives. In Pedro’s case we have to understand his feeling with the front end and the hard tire. For Brad it was a more solid day; after some crashes recently, it was important to finish and get some confidence back. Unfortunately Maverick could not finish and get what he deserved but his performance was incredible, and we have to build on that for the future. With Enea we also had a positive weekend after a lot of challenges recently. It’s a small boost for the coming races.”
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP's Fabio Quartararo and Álex Rins relentlessly pushed to the limit in today's Brembo Grand Prix of Italy Race, but a difficult second half of the 23-lap dash had them finish in 14th and 15th place respectively.

Quartararo had a good start from P4 and slotted into fifth position in the opening stages. Though riding defensively, he nevertheless lost some ground in the opening four laps, dropping to ninth. On lap 9, Raul Fernandez got past the Yamaha man, while Maverick Viñales crashed out through an incident with another rider. However, as El Diablo was under pressure from Brad Binder, he soon found himself in tenth place. With teammate Rins approaching, the Frenchman started chasing the two riders fighting for eighth place but couldn't get close enough. Over the last four laps, some charging rivals made the number 20's race harder. Ultimately, Quartararo took the chequered flag in 14th place, 26.130s from the winner.

Rins commenced battle from P9 and emerged from the opening lap in twelfth place. Battling in the mid-pack, he briefly lost two positions, but with Fermin Aldeguer running wide and Johann Zarco crashing out, the Yamaha man was back in twelfth place. When Viñales crashed out too, the number 42 was up to eleventh and closing in on his teammate. Together with Quartararo, he was in hot pursuit of the two riders battling for eighth. However, with seven laps to go, Rins started to lose steam and gradually dropped down the order. He finished in 15th place, 28.155s from first.

Today's results keep Quartararo in 10th place in the overall standings with 61 points. Rins is now in joint-17th position with 32 points. Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP are 7th in the team championship with 93 points, and Yamaha is in 5th position in the constructor championship with 92 points.

The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team will be back in action next week for the Grand Prix of The Netherlands which will be held at the TT Circuit Assen from 27-29 June.

MASSIMO MEREGALLI
Team Director, Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP

"We expected a difficult outing today, but we didn't expect the extensive drop our riders experienced in the second half of the race. Fabio and Álex wanted to keep pushing as usual, but low grip and difficulties on braking at the end of the race prohibited them from being able to defend their positions and battle to their full capabilities. Of course, we had hoped for better results at the team's home GP. Luckily, we have another round coming up next week. We will analyse today's data carefully and assess how we can best move forward in Assen."
FABIO QUARTARARO
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider
"Today, my shoulder felt bad, of course, but it wasn't the worst. The feeling we had with the bike this weekend was not great, apart from during FP1 and during the time attack, and physically it was really tough. I had expected to feel better here, but the hotter it is, the less grip we have, and today we knew grip would be really low. Let's see what we can do at the GP in Assen next week."

ÁLEX RINS
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider
"It was tough. Usually, you have to give it your all during the race, but you also need to manage and take care of the tyres. But because we're still missing a little step, we have to go really at 100% every lap. In the first part of the Race, I was feeling a little bit better than in the Sprint, but as soon as I was behind Fabio, the tyres started to drop. I had to change my riding style. I'm 100% fit, but I was experiencing some discomfort on my right side – my neck, shoulder, and arm – because of the different manoeuvres and angles. We were struggling with rear grip, so that's something we need to work on."


>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Gresini Ducati

ALEX MARQUEZ #73
“Today was the almost-perfect version of myself. The red bikes were difficult to beat today, and despite that, we half did it. It could have been a good circuit to recover some points from Marc, but he did a better job. In any case, we’re heading into a busy time race-wise and it was important to start on the right foot.”

FERMIN ALDEGUER #54
“It was a tough Sunday, but I’m happy because after that terrible mistake, I got back to the track and worked hard to be quick and gather some data and make more experience. From 19th to 12th is a good comeback, even though there’s some bitter taste because we could have battled for the podium.”

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>RAUL FERNANDEZ

Grid position: P11 – Started on Front: medium – slick tire & Rear: soft – slick tire
Hot, sunny, dry conditions prevailed for the Grand Prix on Sunday and along with the majority of the rest of the field, Raul opted for Michelin’s medium tire compound on the front of his Trackhouse Aprilia RS-GP25 and softs on the rear.
Starting lights out and Raul put in a steady first lap to hold position before briefly losing a place during Lap 2.
From Lap 3, he reeled off a succession of consistent laps which saw progress to 13th, then 11th on Lap 4 and 10th by Lap 6.
Three laps later and Raul was a further two places up the road before he hit 7th on Lap 10. His pace continued and he briefly made it into 6th spot for three laps before having to contend with a rider recovering from a long-lap penalty which saw him back to 7th where he held station and pushed through the final 9 laps to record a really strong, confidence building finish.

“I’m really happy! The pace was good, but in the first lap I was 15th again - we need to find something for the start. After that, I felt that we could fight very well and it was easy to fight with the rest of the manufacturers. After the crash on Friday, my arm felt strange and the last 10 laps today have been quite difficult to manage for me. I tried to save the result and I think without the pain I had the pace to fight with Franco (Morbidelli) for the top 6. I still feel good with this result after all the difficulties we had at the beginning of the season. Also, this race gives me a lot of confidence for the future. At the moment, I’m probably using 80% of the bike after the upgrades, so I need a bit more time to adapt to all the changes and get the maximum out of it. Aprilia is working very well and we are going in a good way.”

AI OGURA

Grid position: P21 – Started on Front: medium – slick tire & Rear: soft – slick tire
While starting from the rear of the grid meant the Grand Prix would be a fight for positions through the likely traffic ahead, Ai’s pace in the 11 lap Sprint meant his crew were confident he could convert a solid finish – provided the time away from riding did not affect him in the closing stages of the 23 lap race.
No evidence of any lack of pace appeared as he took off well and gained a spot halfway around the clockwise undulations of the Mugello Circuit and crossed the strip for the first time in 17th place.
On Lap 3 he made it to P16 and after another tour was up to 15th. He held station in a pack of riders until Lap 9 when he went to 14th and then proceeded to pick off bikes ahead for 13th place with 9 to go, 12th position on Lap 17, 11th on 18 and on Lap 20, into 10th place.
There he stayed, unable to make up the gap to 9th place in the final 3 laps, bringing his RS-GP25 home with a top ten and haul of 6 World Championship points. A particularly strong performance after 4 weeks of enforced lack of training.

“It was fun to ride. I think it was a good race today - I gained a lot of positions in yesterday’s Sprint and even more today. Thinking about how we started on Friday, having a difficult Qualifying on Saturday, I think we ended up in a good place. It was just a comeback race, my target was to finish, but to score points is great. Mugello was probably not the best circuit to come back after an injury, but today I felt quite good. On Friday, I was pretty tired after the practice and I was a bit worried, especially about Sunday. But I improved a lot from Friday to Saturday and even more from Saturday to today. Assen is maybe another physical circuit, but hopefully I will be much better there.”



>>>>>>>>>>>>>NO LUCK IN MUGELLO FOR RED BULL KTM TECH3, EYES ALREADY ON THE NEXT ONE IN ASSEN!

Sunday, June 22nd, 2025

Race day at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello will be one to forget for sure, after both Red Bull KTM Tech3’s Maverick Viñales and Enea Bastianini crashed out early in the race, calling it for an early end to our adventure in Tuscany. While he was battling out for 4th after a solid start, there was nothing Viñales could do when Franco Morbidelli made a way-too-aggressive move on the Spaniard, and caused him to crash. Morbidelli was handed one long lap penalty for irresponsible riding, an insufficient punishment, looking at how much it cost Viñales, clearly on course for big points today. Teammate Bastianini crashed out of the last corner in the opening lap, so the Italian dream was sadly over quickly for the local hero.

The stage was set for a beautiful Sunday at the Mugello, with Maverick Viñales arriving confident from his 4th place in the Tissot Sprint on Sunday. Starting from 5th, ‘Top Gun’ took once again a rocket start heading to turn 1 elbow-to-elbow with Pedro Acosta. The number 37 tried to sneak on the inside, but Viñales kept the upper-hand from the outside to be in the best position for the next left turn, and he kept the advantage on fellow KTM rider Acosta. Maverick sat in 6th after the opening lap, but quickly overtook Fabio Quartararo to move up to 5th. Maverick set a solid early pace which allowed him to escape from both Acosta and Quartararo battling out for 6th behind. At the front, the Ducati Factory duo Marc Marquez-Francesco Bagnaia was providing us with a hectic fight for the lead, which allowed the three riders behind to completely close the gap on them. A net front-5 was formed, closed by Maverick, just 0.5 seconds ahead of Acosta. The crazy battle at the front continued to go on, with Alex Marquez adding himself to the mix, and Top Gun continued to hold his solid pace, with an impressive 1’46.761 on lap 5, which allowed him to close on Franco Morbidelli ahead. However, watch out from behind with Fabio Di Giannantonio putting in the hop laps behind. By lap 8, Maverick was completely in the back wheel of Morbidelli, ready to take on the opportunity. Then began the battle for 4th between these two. Maverick managed to make a move on the #21 in San Donato at lap 9, but a way too aggressive move of Morbidelli in the following turn, who clearly did not have the space to go on the inside, pushed Maverick, who suffered a high speed crash. Unfair and unlucky outcome to this Italian Grand Prix for our number 12, who deserved much more than that today. We will highlight that he rode the second fastest lap of the race on lap 2, in 1'46.568.

Sadly, the story in Mugello was quickly over too for Enea Bastianini. The Italian had taken a really strong start from 16th, moving up to 14th in the first turns, and then battling it out for 13th against Raul Fernandez. Eventually, he could overcome the Spaniard, but then he got a bit tight with Johann Zarco. Both were showing fast speed in the first lap trying to recover positions, and Enea lost the front at the last corner of the opening lap when he released the brakes. Story over for Bastianini who wanted that good result at home so bad. We have to see the glass half-full, as we saw some good improvements over this weekend. Luckily we have another chance next week, as the team will head directly to the good old TT Circuit Assen for the Motul Grand Prix of the Netherlands, on June 27-28-29.

Maverick Viñales: "It has been a very positive weekend, every time we get closer and closer to the front guys, which is what we are looking for. In the race, we felt really good, we were controlling the rear tire to save it for later, but unfortunately, another rider touched me and I crashed. We must be very pleased though, because we are now regularly fighting for the top positions against all the Ducatis, which is the most important. I am very happy with how our level is growing up, and I am confident that we can continue improving and getting even closer to the top guys."

Enea Bastianini: "Our start was good, but in the end of the first lap we found ourselves in a battle with Johann Zarco after struggling to go past Raul Fernandez. We both arrived very fast to the last corner, I was on the inside, he was outside, and I lost the front when I released the brakes. I had recovered many positions in the first lap because I wanted to do a great result here, but in the end, that was it for me. I think we made some good improvements this weekend, it was positive for us. It was important to get a good result, for myself, for the team, for the morale, but we will try again next week."

Nicolas Goyon, Team Manager: "We are leaving Mugello with a huge bitter taste, because we had done a really good job until today. After both Maverick Viñales and Enea Bastianini reached their best sprint results of the season yesterday, we felt completely ready for a great team result today. Unfortunately, Maverick was another victim added to the big list of Franco Morbidelli, who literally bumped into Maverick after he was overtaken. He was penalised for his move, but the fact is that he just ruined the strong chances of Maverick for a top 5 and eventually a podium. It is a great shame, but we have to see the glass half-full, and it was another extremely positive weekend for Maverick, so we know the next rounds will be bright for him. Enea Bastianini made some important steps this weekend, but today he crashed in the last corner of the opening lap, and that was it. The work continues for Enea, and I am sure that he will continue to make steps forward in the upcoming races."


>>>>>>>>

HRC

Points salvaged from complicated Italian GP weekend by Mir

Joan Mir’s rise continued as he fought until the very end, once again charging through the field to contest the top ten with Takaaki Nakagami also battling for the final point scoring position down to the wire.

Making it three-point scoring finishes in a row, Joan Mir was able to take some positives from his most complicated weekend of the year. In front of a record breaking Mugello crowd, Mir shot forward to immediately gain ground on his rivals. As he did in the Sprint on Saturday, the #36 worked his way steadily forward and was into the points from the third lap. The majority of his race would see Mir chasing down the Yamahas of Rins and Quartararo, passing both with ease in the closing stages of the race. 11th at the chequered flag, the 2020 MotoGP World Champion was able to taste some reward for his efforts across the weekend.

Across the other side of the Honda HRC Castrol garage, Takaaki Nakagami also had a strong race just behind his teammate for the weekend. Running wide into Turn 1, the Japanese Test Rider was able to rally and a consistent series of lap saw him climb into the points by the middle of the race. A hard-charging Aldegeur would steal the final point from Nakagami at the end of the 23 laps, the #30 focusing on bringing his Honda RC213V home and delivering crucial data to the engineers. Able to match the performance of Mir throughout the majority of the weekend, Nakagami has put in a solid Grand Prix filling in for the recovering Luca Marini and returns to Japan with a wealth of new knowledge.

Honda remain second in the Constructor Championship; four points clear of KTM and six ahead of Aprilia.

The racing isn’t over yet as teams and riders now head some 1,400km north to The Cathedral – Assen, Netherlands. Round 10 comes next weekend, June 27 to June 29, at the longest-standing circuit on the calendar, TT Circuit Assen having first hosted the MotoGP World Championship since its inception in 1949.





Joan Mir
11th

“I’m happy that we were able to take the flag and take some points after a really difficult weekend. Doing anything more than what we achieved today, it would have been really hard and a big, big risk. We knew how tough it would be this weekend, so we made the most of it and tested a lot of different parts and setups for the RC213V. I think we were able to make use of our situation and get some good information for the engineers. The team did a great job to get us there. Now it’s time to go straight to Assen and aim for something more.”

Joan Mir




Takaaki Nakagami
16th

“I was targeting to finish in the points, and I was feeling good with my race pace early on. I lost a bit of time in the first part of the race but was able to steadily move ahead and pass some guys. Later in the race we had quite a bit of vibrating in the rear so I had to manage that to make sure we could finish. When Fermin arrived at the end, I didn’t have the pace to fight him that late, a shame to not get a point at least. I really enjoyed being with the factory team, a completely different approach inside and outside the garage and I was able to learn a lot. I think it will help with my main job in Japan to have even more information. Thanks to everyone in Honda HRC Castrol for this weekend.”

>>>>>>>>Three Aprilias in the top ten for the Mugello race

MARCO BEZZECCHI FIFTH, SAVADORI SEVENTEENTH. FERNÁNDEZ SEVENTH AND OGURA TENTH FOR TRACKHOUSE MOTOGP TEAM

Aprilia Racing finished the long race at the Mugello Circuit with three RS-GP25 machines in the top ten. Marco Bezzecchi finished fifth, coming from behind, whereas Trackhouse MotoGP Team’s Raúl Fernández and Ai Ogura rounded out the result with a seventh and tenth place respectively.

Marco Bezzecchi confirmed his competitive race pace, replicating the speed he had also demonstrated in the sprint race on Saturday.

Lorenzo Savadori continued the fundamental job of developing the RS-GP25 in a race environment, finishing seventeenth.

Trackhouse MotoGP Team also had a positive race, with Raúl Fernández finishing seventh and rookie Ai Ogura, just back from an injury, finishing tenth.
bezzecchi


Support from the fans was spectacular and I truly gave one hundred percent, both Saturday and Sunday. It was a great race in terms of performance. I came back strong from behind and made some nice overtakes. We are growing and I must say that we worked rather well this weekend. I showed that I am pretty fast and always competitive. We need to keep this up, improving more and more.

savadori


It was a fantastic race start. Both the bike and the solutions we are testing responded well. Unfortunately, I had a significant drop in the tyres from the ninth lap on. We are making progress and we had a great race in Mugello this year. We must remain optimistic. By testing the upgrades directly in the race environment, the bike is growing rapidly. We need to keep working this way because nothing is ever enough in MotoGP.

rivola


Three Aprilias in the top ten is certainly a good result. It is a great pleasure to see the Trackhouse MotoGP Team RS-GP25 bikes competitive with Raúl and Ai, who has improved with every run since being back from his injury. The most gratifying thing for me, besides Marco’s umpteenth comeback ride, is that our hard work is paying off and we cannot help but be proud in Noale, although obviously not fully satisfied. The development achieved with Lorenzo and the package we tested in Aragón gave Marco a bike that is undoubtedly better than the one from the previous race. Doing the fastest speed in the race here in Mugello is a small reward, but we will most definitely be growing even more.