Assen Saturday WorldSBK/SSP/300/WCR Results/Quotes/Notes/Images | MCNews

WorldSBK 2025

Round Three Assen
Saturday – WSBK Riders recap race one

Nicolo Bulega – P1

“I’m very happy because we started really well from FP1 and we improved a little bit in every session. I had a lot of fun riding my bike during the race so thanks to my team. They gave me a very good package and I tried to use it 100% until the last lap. I was quite angry because I missed pole position and it wasn’t my mistake. It can happen but it actually gave me more motivation for Race 1. I was very focused on trying to win. I want to enjoy this victory and then we’ll think about tomorrow. The weather might change, it might be worse, but it’ll be the same for everybody.”

Andrea Locatelli – P2

“I was quite surprised because I was sure we were strong but I never imagined I could fight for second! I expected a podium but not to be second with a big gap behind to third. We did an amazing job. We’ve worked really well and we had a good Superpole. We’re starting to put all the puzzle pieces together to try to be fast in every situation. I’m quite confident with the bike and we’re working well.”

Danilo Petrucci – P3

“It’s really, really nice to be on the podium. When you’re fighting with the top guys it’s always a matter of details. It can be a tenth of a second per lap that makes the difference. This race was quite difficult because I was afraid of tyre wear. I expected it to be a problem with the rear but in the end the problem was the front tyre. In the last eight laps it was crazy! Me and Toprak had a great battle, but the problem was just staying on the bike because the front tyre was gone. In the end, it’s a great podium and good points for the championship. I’m really happy because we’re doing a great job and hopefully we’ll be back on the podium again.”

Toprak Razgatlioglu – P4

“In the race I had many problems because the bike wasn’t turning. At the beginning of the race the grip was okay but after 10 laps it started to drop. I passed Locatelli but then I felt something very strange in the last sector. The rear tyre dropped a lot for me and on the next lap I felt it at Turn 3. On every lap it got worse and I’m lucky to have finished the race in fourth position. It was impossible to fight with Petrucci. We need to improve the bike for dry conditions, because the rear tyre drops after 10 laps. If it’s wet we’ll see tomorrow. I hope in the wet the tyre won’t drop like today.”

Iker Lecuona – P5

“I’m happy, that’s for sure, but what matters most to me is the progress we’ve made. Looking back at yesterday, I approached the day with the same mindset I had in Portimão – focused entirely on the work and the plan we had set with the team, without stressing too much about potential setbacks or the classification. Even though I ended day one quite far back, we understood the reasons – a bike setting change that didn’t work out as hoped but that nevertheless provided us with useful information. This morning in FP3 we returned to a more standard base, tailored to the track, and the feeling came back quite quickly. In qualifying, P14 was a disappointment, I can’t deny it, but if you look at the lap times, we weren’t that far off; 0.8 from the top isn’t a disaster. We knew the race would be tricky in terms of tyre wear, and it was. Still, I made a strong start, executed several passes, and maintained good pace. The biggest issue for me during the race was the front tyre. With ten laps to go, the drop was significant, and I had to manage that while continuing to push and fight, also with my teammate, until the very last corner. But we can be satisfied with the work we’ve done in the end. Now let’s see what the weather brings tomorrow and whether we can find a solution to improve front tyre life and keep better pace in the second half of the race.”

Xavi Vierge – P6

“A positive Saturday for us here at Assen, a flowing track where we’re not able to fully exploit one of our main strengths – braking. After a very tough qualifying session, we worked well with the team, made a small but effective change to the bike’s setup, and put together a strong comeback in Race 1. In the early laps I didn’t have great rear grip, but lap by lap the feeling improved, and I was able to make some good passes and move progress, even battling with Iker on the final lap for a top-five finish. I’m happy with that result and with the race overall, as we found similar feeling to what we had at Portimão. In the second half of the race, I struggled a bit with front-end feeling, but I think that was the case for many riders. We’ve collected some good data to analyse as we work to find something more for tomorrow. The weather could make things unpredictable, but we’re ready and looking forward to it.”

Dominique Aegerter – P7

“Unfortunately, starting from 11th wasn’t ideal and made the race more complicated. I missed out on seventh in qualifying by just a tenth in a very tight pack. Still, we knew our race pace was strong, so I stayed confident. The opening laps were tough—it’s never easy to make passes with so many riders around. Once I found my rhythm, I could start moving forward. I really enjoyed the late-race battles and even fought for the top five. Overall, a solid race, but we want more tomorrow—we know our potential.”

Remy Gardner – P8

“I pushed hard in Superpole to get a solid grid spot. Eighth on the third row wasn’t perfect, but it gave us a fighting chance. At the start, I got a bit boxed in and had to work hard to recover positions. It was a real challenge to overtake, and I had to push a lot to stay with the front group. I was struggling for grip in the closing laps after pushing so hard earlier to offset the areas where we were lacking speed, which made it tough to attack for a top five. Still, we’ve got two more chances tomorrow, and I’m confident we can fight at the front.”

Alex Lowes – P11

“We worked quite hard this weekend on race pace and we did a lot of laps in the practice sessions. I knew that tyre life was going to be difficult, so I wanted to get a good start to put myself in position to maybe use the experience we had gained in the last part of the race. I was pushing hard to fight with the guys in the top five or six positions. I made a mistake on the small left onto the straight. I was so focused on the exit and trying to stay with the riders in front I think I was a little bit fast. It is a shame but I picked the bike up and did my best to the end of the race. Even with some damage on the footpeg, the pace was quite strong.”

Tarran Mackenzie – P12

“Mixed emotions to be honest, as it was probably one of the best rides I’ve had but I stalled the bike on the grid, which resulted in a double lap penalty. To lose all that time and then come through and catch a few guys for twelfth, the pace I had was probably the best I’ve ever had, with really strong lap times. So I’m really happy about that, and the bike felt good, it was just all ruined by the start, which was totally my fault. Quite annoying, but hopefully we can try and improve on that tomorrow. I don’t know what the weather will do, but we’ll be prepared for either scenario, wet or dry.”

Garrett Gerloff – P13

“There were some positives from today. I did my best ever lap time in qualifying, by more than half a second. That was positive but it did not help me with my starting position. I tried my best in the opening race but still we need to improve. So, I am just going to have a good night’s sleep and see if we can find a solution for tomorrow because we need something. It may rain tomorrow and if it is raining, anything could happen.”

Jason O’Halloran – P16

“We made a few changes from Superpole, but it didn’t quite work for us as I lost front grip from quite early in the race and was struggling to turn the bike a bit, so I brought it home with 20 laps of data. We’ll look through everything tonight to see if there’s anywhere we can improve tomorrow to bring it together a little bit better. I felt like I had decent pace in practice, but it didn’t quite work for us in the race, so we’ll check everything and look to make some improvements for tomorrow.”

Zaqhwan Zaidi – P17

“I think today’s race went quite well. I learned a lot, that’s for sure. This circuit is quite unique and difficult too with its high-speed turns, but I think we’ve made good progress, lap by lap. In the race I tried to just focus on myself and control the pace, finishing seventeenth. I’m very happy with the team and thank everyone for their hard work. I really enjoyed riding today actually and hopefully tomorrow we can make a few adjustments in the areas where we need to improve and be prepared for Race 2. We don’t know whether the weather conditions will change, but we’ll try to be ready. And a big thanks again to the team!”

Andrea Iannone – DNF

“A complicated day for us here in Assen; this morning I had a good pace with used tyres, then in Superpole, in the second attempt I had a problem, I tried to push and try to improve my time anyway, but I didn’t succeed, so I started tenth. With a few hundredths better I could have improved at least one row, then unfortunately on the re-entry lap I crashed heavily in turn 7. In the race I had to start with the second bike, but I didn’t have a great feeling and I lose the front in turn 4. I’m sorry for not taking points, I’ll give my all tomorrow to finish positively. I want to thank the whole team anyway, because they worked hard to get me back on track.”

Axel Bassani – DNF

“We had a really good Superpole and finished in P4 – but later we were given a penalty and started in P7. But, it had been my best qualifying since I joined this team, so I am happy about that. In Race One, from the beginning, I had a bad feeling with the front. I stayed consistent for 20 laps with the same pace and looked to arrive in P5. But afterwards I made a mistake I touched the rear of Xavi Vierge’s machine and went down. Now we look to tomorrow’s races.

Alvaro Bautista – DNF

“I made a mistake; there’s not much to add. I had a good feeling. The race pace was competitive. I got caught up in an early tussle and lost some patience. I had all the right cards to take the podium easily. We will try again tomorrow, although we will have to see what the weather will be like”.

Yari Montella – DNF

“I like to think this is all part of the process. I’m happy with the work we’re doing as a team: we had a good FP3 and a good qualifying session. We’re consistently in the mid-pack and that’s something to be proud of. Now we just need to turn that into race results. Unfortunately, today a crash on the second lap interrupted our run. I lost the front at Turn 1. I was leaned over about two degrees more than usual and it tucked. I’m sorry for the team and all the effort they’re putting in. Tomorrow we’ll try to salvage the weekend.”

WorldSBK Race One Report

The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship’s first race at Assen is in the books, and the ‘Cathedral of Speed’ hosted another thriller as Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) topped the podium. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) was a huge eight-seconds back to claim second with an equally massive buffer over Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) who rounded out the podium.

Bulega claimed the holeshot into the first corner ahead of Locatelli, with ‘Loka’ bundling his way through at Turn 5 before Bulega responded immediately. That allowed Bulega to cruise his way to victory while the chasing pack scrapped it out over the remaining podium places.

Meanwhile, behind Locatelli, sharks in the form of Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team), Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) and Razgatlioglu began to circle; until out of nowhere, in Lap 7 when Bautista and Lowes collided at Turn 9, wiping them both out of the race from the podium fight. ‘El Turco’ briefly overtook Locatelli, however the much-improved Yamaha rider battled back to second after following the reigning Champion for a few laps. Petrucci surged late to pass Toprak to bump ‘El Turco’ off the podium for his first podium since Australia’s Tissot Superpole Race.

Razgatlioglu had a sluggish start to the race, eighth on the opening lap, however by lap three he was back up into the podium fight but ultimately the Turk didn’t have the pace to make it on to the rostrum.

Iker Lecuona (Honda HRC) and Xavi Vierge (Honda HRC) both had strong results earning the best combined result of the season for the Honda factory riders, with Vierge only two-tenths of a second behind his team-mate.

Dominique Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) earned the best result of his season so far in P7 ahead of Remy Gardner.

Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) charged up the grid from P13 to the top six, however late surges from Lecuona, Vierge, and Aegerter bumped him back to P9 for the Dutchman at his home round. Scott Redding (MGM BONOVO Racing) rounded out the top 10 after starting the race back in P16.

Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) crashed on Turn 5 of Lap 7; however he was able to rejoin the race to salvage eleventh. Tarran Mackenzie (PETRONAS MIE Honda Racing Team) similarly recovered well after having to serve two Long Lap Penalties for a jump start to the race, finishing in P12.

Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) finished 13th just ahead of hugely experienced journeyman Tito Rabat (Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSBK Team).

Ryan Vickers (Motocorsa Racing) was the only rookie to finish in the points on the day.

Jason O’Halloran (Pata Maxus Yamaha) and Zaqhwan Zaidi (PETRONAS MIE Honda Racing Team rounded out the tail end finishers.

Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) only scored 9 points in his last time out at Assen in WorldSSP, this time unfortunately continued his run of poor luck in Holland, crashing out of the race in Lap 2’s Turn 1. Bahattin Sofuoglu (Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) had an unfortunate crash at Turn 1 of Lap 6, followed shortly after by Andrea Iannone (Team Pata Go Eleven) who crashed in Lap 7’s Turn 4. On the race’s last lap, Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) saw his otherwise strong race spoiled by a crash while rounding Turn 8.

WorldSBK Race One Results

WorldSBK Championship Standings

WorldSBK Superpole Times

WorldSSP Race One Report

Assen’s ‘Cathedral of Speed’ welcomed the FIM Supersport World Championship riders for their Race 1 in the Pirelli Dutch Round. The afternoon’s action saw the stacked WorldSSP grid lay it on the line again, with Bo Bendsneyder (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) coming out on top for his home fans after a Lap 2 red flag. Oncu held an early lead, but first Bendsneyder, and later Manzi pushed him back to third.

The red flag was waved on Lap 2, after Loic Arbel and Eduardo Montero collided at Turn 5 with both riders immediately being taken to the medical centre where Montero will be reassessed tomorrow, however Arbel was diagnosed with a lower leg fracture. The race was restarted over a 12-lap distance with the grid based on the Superpole results.

Can Oncu (Yamaha BLU CRU Evan Bros Team) had another trademark quick start to claim the holeshot, establishing a margin for himself at the front of the pack. As the race continued, Stefano Manzi (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) -who leaped up the timesheet into the first corner from P6- and Bo Bendsneyder gradually cut away at the lead of Oncu until the Dutchman caught Oncu and overtook the Turk for P1. Manzi then seized his opportunity and took on Oncu in the final chicane to claim P2, relegating the polesitter to P3.

Jaume Masia (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) didn’t quite have the pace to battle with Manzi and Bendsneyder for the podium positions but a strong day at the office for the young Spaniard earned him a comfortable P4. Tom Booth-Amos (PTR Triumph Factory Racing) and Leonardo Taccini (Ecosantagata Althea Racing Team) had a thrilling dogfight for the P5, the Italian and the Brit trading overtakes until Booth-Amos sealed the fight and claimed P5 and left P6 for Taccini.

For their best results of the season, Philipp Oettl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team) and Aldi Mahendra (Yamaha BLU CRU Evan Bros Team) earned P7 and P8 finishes, a step in the right direction they will look continue. Lucas Mahias (GMT94-YAMAHA) had a deceptively strong Race 1 at Assen, finishing P9 while he was a mere half second out of P5. Jeremy Alcoba (Kawasaki WorldSSP Team) rounded out the top 10 to claim another top ten for Kawasaki.

Valentin Debise (Renzi Corse) was leading the second pack of riders as they pushed to catch Masia and Manzi ahead of them when he crashed at Turn 3 on Lap 5. Marcel Schroetter (WRP Racing) and Xavi Cardelus (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) crashed on Turn 5 of Lap 5 after the restart.  While Schroetter was given the all-clear, Cardelus was taken to the medical centre.

Oli Bayliss (PTR Triumph Factory Racing) and Niccolo Antonelli (VFT Racing) crashed on Turn 1 after the restart and while Antonelli was able to restart, Bayliss’s race ended there. Kaito Toba (PETRONAS MIE Honda Racing Team) was forced to end his day early with a tech issue after entering the pit lane early before the session restart.

Luke Power finished just outside the top twenty.

WorldSSP Race One Results

WorldSSP Championship Standings

WorldSSP Superpole Times

WorldSSP300 Race One Report

Jeffrey Buis (Freudenberg KTM-Paligo Racing) secured an emotional home victory at the TT Circuit Assen after a last-lap scrap featuring six riders fighting until the final chicane and to the line in the FIM Supersport 300 World Championship as he fended off Humberto Maier (Yamaha AD78 FIMLA by MS Racing) and Julio Garcia (Prodina Kawasaki Racing Sport) in Race 1 for the Pirelli Dutch Round.

Buis got the holeshot when lights went out as he looked to win on home soil and, while he was able to pull out an initial gap, he was soon swallowed up by the chasing pack as six riders battled for victory. While the lead was predictably changing hands throughout the 12-lap battle, Brazil’s Humberto Maier (Yamaha AD78 FIMLA by MS Racing) took the lead on the run to the chicane on the final lap but the #6 responded under braking to claim a famous home win, his 15th in the Championship. Maier was P2 and less than a tenth away from Buis while Julio Garcia (Prodina Kawasaki Racing Sport) completed the rostrum, just 0.191s away from victory.

Benat Fernandez (Team#109 Retro Traffic Kove) crossed the line in fourth place but was demoted one place for exceeding track limits on the final lap, putting him in fifth. That promoted David Salvador (Team ProDina XCI) to fourth while Carter Thompson (MTM Kawasaki) was sixth, but it was incredibly close across the line.

Australia’s Thompson was just 0.615s away from victory as he battled for victory in the six-rider lead group, but ultimately came up just shy of a maiden win.

Carter Thompson – P6

“Solid result, obviously not want I am aiming for but happy to take the points. Fought hard in the front group the entire eace but just couldn’t get it across the line for a podium. Lining up P2 for Race 2 – really looking forward to it and fingers crossed the weather is nice to us. Again thanks to the whole team for all their support and help, that podium is coming we are very close.”

Daniel Mogeda (Pons Motosport Italika Racing), making his first start of the 2025 season, was seventh but a huge 11 seconds away from the top six after an epic scrap for the top six. He was 0.029s ahead of Matteo Vannucci (PATA AG Motorsport Italia WorldSSP300) in eighth while Pepe Osuna (ZAPPAS-DEZA-BOX 77 Racing Team) and Mirko Gennai (MTM Kawasaki) rounded out the top ten.

Young Australian Cam Swain finished just outside the top twenty.

The first retirement came on Lap 4 of 12, when Filip Novotny (Accolade Funds Smrz Racing BGR) and Emiliano Ercolani (Kawasaki GP Project) collided at Turn 7, though Ercolani was able to re-join the race. Antonio Torres (Team ProDina XCI) crashed out shortly after when he fell on the exit of Turn 5 on the following lap, with Fernandez involved; it will be investigated by the FIM WorldSBK Stewards. Petr Svoboda (Kawasaki Junior Team by MTM) cashed out with a highside with just a few laps to go at Turn 11, with the Czech rider taken to the medical centre for a check-up.

WorldSSP300 Race One Results

WorldSSP300 Championship Standings

WorldSSP300 Superpole Times

WorldWCR Race One Report

The opening race of the 2025 FIM Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship took place at Assen overnight and the fight for victory was a two woman affair between Maria Herrera (Klint Forward Racing Team) and Beatriz Neila (Ampito Crescent Yamaha), hinting at what might be a battle in the season to come for the Riders’ Championship.

Herrera capitalised on her pole position to secure the holeshot but Nelia was right on her tail throughout the contest. She gave Herrera a run for her money from Lap 9 on, trading overtakes in consecutive laps; culminating in a final sector duel, where Neila overtook Herrera for P1. However, she was given a one position penalty for exceeding track limits on the final lap at Turn 17, demoting her to second.

Kiwi rookie Avalon Lewis (Carl Cox Motorsports) jumped up from the second row to take third place into the first corner, from there, Lewis, Roberta Ponziani (Klint Forward Racing Team) and Sara Sanchez (Terra & Vita GRT Yamaha WorldWCR Team) entered a protracted battle for the final step on the rostrum, repeatedly overtaking each other as none of the three riders could pull away until Ponziani fell slightly behind the pair of Lewis and Sanchez, drifting back to a fairly lonely fifth place finish. As Sanchez and Lewis separated themselves from the pack behind them, they locked horns and battled for third until Sanchez in turn pulled away from the New Zealand rookie who impressed in her first career WorldWCR race, just missing the podium in fourth.

British rookie Chloe Jones (GR Motorsport) distinguished herself in her first WorldWCR race, earning sixth four-seconds clear of returning Australian rider Tayla Relph (Full Throttle Racing) who pipped Mexican rider Astrid Madrigal (Pons Italika Racing FIMLA) for seventh.

Emily Bondi (ZELOS Trasimeno) was the best performing French rider in Race 1 charging up the grid from a P12 start to finish P9. Isis Carreno (Pons Italika Racing FIMLA) logged a top-10 finish in Race 1, almost rising to P9, just half a tenth slower than Bondi.

Lucy Michel (TSL-Racing) crashed out of the race in Lap 5 on the long righthanded Turn 11, ending her day early from P11. In the medical centre she was diagnosed with a chest bruise, to be reevaluated tomorrow before the Warm Up. Lucie Boudesseul (GMT94-YAMAHA) crashed out in Lap 9 on Turn 7, taken to the medical centre where she was fortunately assessed to be fit with a left thigh contusion.

WorldWCR Race One Results

WorldWCR Championship Standings

WorldWCR Superpole Times

2025 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship Calendar