Few races are written immediately into the history books as the flag flies at the finish line, but the 2018 Dutch GP will be one of them. It was Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) who emerged from the melee to take the win on the Championship’s 70th visit to the track, but the headlines were stolen somewhat as the TT Circuit Assen hosted a showcase of the best of MotoGP™ starring Marquez, Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP), teammate Maverick Viñales, Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team), teammate Jorge Lorenzo, Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol). And those on the podium at the end – Marquez, Rins and Viñales – fought to the top in the closest top fifteen of all time.
Marquez took the holeshot from pole, with Crutchlow initially on his tail from second on the grid until Lorenzo sliced through from tenth to P2 after another awe-inspiring launch. The Spaniard and Catalan GP winner didn’t wait long to strike for the lead either, attacking Marquez and the two side-by-side in a war of wills until Lorenzo edged ahead. Marquez hit back a lap later at Turn 15, before Lorenzo repaid the favour once more. The duel was the first of many; an early taste of what was to come.
Rossi then made his first attack of the race at the final chicane, a first rehearsal, and set off after Lorenzo – with the Spaniard then suffering a moment soon after and Rossi smashing into the rear of the Ducati, unable to avoid him. But both stayed on and both stayed ahead, with Marquez, Dovizioso, Rins, Crutchlow and Viñales forming a train of riders fighting at the front.
Marquez took Rossi, Viñales took Crutchlow, Dovizioso took Rossi, Dovizioso took Marquez, Marquez struck back, Rins took Rossi and then Dovizioso…but Lorenzo held firm at the front. With eight riders within a second, from Lorenzo down to Johann Zarco (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) at the back of the train, the touch paper was well and truly lit on an absolute classic.
The war continued before another bout of bigger drama with 15 laps to go as Rins attacked Marquez and the two were only a hair’s breadth apart – no contact, but the reigning Champion suffered a big moment as he got back on the gas. That dropped him back off the lead, with Lorenzo chased by Rins and Dovizioso.
The Italian dueled his teammate for the lead soon after and Lorenzo began to drop back slightly, with Viñales then taking the lead for the first time with eight to go. Next time around Marquez had sliced back through into the lead, before the next lap saw both almost throw it all away as they dueled and both headed wide. Rossi took over – another stunner from the ‘Doctor’ at the final chicane – but ‘DesmoDovi’ took him back.
Four wide at times, Marquez made his way back into P1…and that was all she wrote, for the lead at least. After one of the closest, most spectacular races in the history of the world’s oldest motorsport Championship, the reigning Champion was able to pull clear to take a stunning fourth win of the year – and increase his points lead.
The battle behind wasn’t over, however, and Viñales had pushed through to second before a last lap attack from Rins – with the Suzuki rider taking his second ever premier class rostrum. Viñales was forced to settle for third but back on the podium for the first time since Texas…and the fight for fourth showed why Rossi had been rehearsing.
The ‘Doctor’ left it late but lunged up the inside of Dovizioso into the famous Geert Timmer chicane on the final lap, and he was ahead – but ‘DesmoDovi’ took him back on the exit, getting such a good exit that the number 04 was almost on a par with Viñales over the line.
Marquez, Rins, Viñales, Dovizioso and Rossi were followed home by Crutchlow and Lorenzo, with Zarco, Alvaro Bautista (Angel Nieto Team) and Jack Miller (Alma Pramac Racing) completing the top ten in one of the greatest races contested on two wheels.
MOTUL TT ASSEN
MotoGP Race Classification 2018.
| Pos. | Points | Num. | Rider | Nation | Team | Bike | Km/h | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 | 93 | Marc MARQUEZ | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 171.8 | 41’13.863 |
| 2 | 20 | 42 | Alex RINS | SPA | Team SUZUKI ECSTAR | Suzuki | 171.6 | +2.269 |
| 3 | 16 | 25 | Maverick VIÑALES | SPA | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 171.6 | +2.308 |
| 4 | 13 | 4 | Andrea DOVIZIOSO | ITA | Ducati Team | Ducati | 171.6 | +2.422 |
| 5 | 11 | 46 | Valentino ROSSI | ITA | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 171.6 | +2.963 |
| 6 | 10 | 35 | Cal CRUTCHLOW | GBR | LCR Honda CASTROL | Honda | 171.5 | +3.876 |
| 7 | 9 | 99 | Jorge LORENZO | SPA | Ducati Team | Ducati | 171.5 | +4.462 |
| 8 | 8 | 5 | Johann ZARCO | FRA | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | Yamaha | 171.3 | +7.001 |
| 9 | 7 | 19 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | SPA | Angel Nieto Team | Ducati | 171.3 | +7.541 |
| 10 | 6 | 43 | Jack MILLER | AUS | Alma Pramac Racing | Ducati | 170.9 | +13.056 |
| 11 | 5 | 29 | Andrea IANNONE | ITA | Team SUZUKI ECSTAR | Suzuki | 171.0 | +14.255 |
| 12 | 4 | 44 | Pol ESPARGARO | SPA | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 170.7 | +15.876 |
| 13 | 3 | 41 | Aleix ESPARGARO | SPA | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | Aprilia | 170.7 | +15.986 |
| 14 | 2 | 45 | Scott REDDING | GBR | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | Aprilia | 170.7 | +16.019 |
| 15 | 1 | 26 | Dani PEDROSA | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 170.7 | +16.043 |
| 16 | 53 | Tito RABAT | SPA | Reale Avintia Racing | Ducati | 170.7 | +16.416 | |
| 17 | 38 | Bradley SMITH | GBR | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 169.8 | +29.073 | |
| 18 | 55 | Hafizh SYAHRIN | MAL | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | Yamaha | 169.5 | +33.824 | |
| 19 | 30 | Takaaki NAKAGAMI | JPN | LCR Honda IDEMITSU | Honda | 169.6 | +34.037 | |
| 20 | 12 | Thomas LUTHI | SWI | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | Honda | 168.5 | +47.853 | |
| Not Classified | ||||||||
| 9 | Danilo PETRUCCI | ITA | Alma Pramac Racing | Ducati | 170.9 | 9 Laps | ||
| 10 | Xavier SIMEON | BEL | Reale Avintia Racing | Ducati | 156.7 | 9 Laps | ||
| 17 | Karel ABRAHAM | CZE | Angel Nieto Team | Ducati | 165.9 | 15 Laps | ||
MotoGP World Standing 2018.
| Pos. | Rider | Bike | Nation | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marc MARQUEZ | Honda | SPA | 140 |
| 2 | Valentino ROSSI | Yamaha | ITA | 99 |
| 3 | Maverick VIÑALES | Yamaha | SPA | 93 |
| 4 | Johann ZARCO | Yamaha | FRA | 81 |
| 5 | Andrea DOVIZIOSO | Ducati | ITA | 79 |
| 6 | Cal CRUTCHLOW | Honda | GBR | 79 |
| 7 | Jorge LORENZO | Ducati | SPA | 75 |
| 8 | Danilo PETRUCCI | Ducati | ITA | 71 |
| 9 | Andrea IANNONE | Suzuki | ITA | 71 |
| 10 | Jack MILLER | Ducati | AUS | 55 |
| 11 | Alex RINS | Suzuki | SPA | 53 |
| 12 | Dani PEDROSA | Honda | SPA | 41 |
| 13 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | Ducati | SPA | 33 |
| 14 | Pol ESPARGARO | KTM | SPA | 32 |
| 15 | Tito RABAT | Ducati | SPA | 27 |
| 16 | Franco MORBIDELLI | Honda | ITA | 19 |
| 17 | Hafizh SYAHRIN | Yamaha | MAL | 17 |
| 18 | Aleix ESPARGARO | Aprilia | SPA | 16 |
| 19 | Scott REDDING | Aprilia | GBR | 11 |
| 20 | Takaaki NAKAGAMI | Honda | JPN | 10 |
| 21 | Bradley SMITH | KTM | GBR | 7 |
| 22 | Mika KALLIO | KTM | FIN | 6 |
| 23 | Karel ABRAHAM | Ducati | CZE | 4 |
| 24 | Thomas LUTHI | Honda | SWI | |
| 25 | Xavier SIMEON | Ducati | BEL |
Credits : Photos and content courtesy of motogp.com
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Wing Hin Motorsports Looks To Japan To Expand Its Driver Development Program![]()
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“This is a strong result to kickstart the season but the development process continues and both drivers acknowledge that the challenges ahead will get tougher.”![]()
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Wing Hin Motorsports’ Driver Development Program received a huge boost when two of its drivers finished the opening round of the Japanese Toyota GAZOO Racing GR86/BRZ Clubman Series in 2nd and 6th positions at Autopolis Circuit.![]()
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Malaysia’s Mitchell Cheah got off to a dream start in his racing debut in Japan when he powered the Wing Hin Motorsports GR86 to a hard-fought 2nd place.![]()
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The 2026 Toyota GAZOO Racing GR86/BRZ Cup will be run over seven rounds. From the season-opener at Autopolis, the Series moves to Round 2 from 16-17 May at Sportsland Sugo, followed by Round 3 from 27-28 June at Okayama International Circuit; and Round 4 from 8-9 August at the Tokachi Speedway. Round 5 will be held at Fuji Speedway from 5-6 September, followed by Round 6 from 3-4 October at Suzuka Circuit before the 7th and final round at Mobility Resort Montegi from 21-22 November.
Wing Hin Motorsports Looks To Japan To Expand Its Driver Development Program![]()
![]()
“This is a strong result to kickstart the season but the development process continues and both drivers acknowledge that the challenges ahead will get tougher.”![]()
![]()
Wing Hin Motorsports’ Driver Development Program received a huge boost when two of its drivers finished the opening round of the Japanese Toyota GAZOO Racing GR86/BRZ Clubman Series in 2nd and 6th positions at Autopolis Circuit.![]()
![]()
Malaysia’s Mitchell Cheah got off to a dream start in his racing debut in Japan when he powered the Wing Hin Motorsports GR86 to a hard-fought 2nd place.![]()
![]()
The 2026 Toyota GAZOO Racing GR86/BRZ Cup will be run over seven rounds. From the season-opener at Autopolis, the Series moves to Round 2 from 16-17 May at Sportsland Sugo, followed by Round 3 from 27-28 June at Okayama International Circuit; and Round 4 from 8-9 August at the Tokachi Speedway. Round 5 will be held at Fuji Speedway from 5-6 September, followed by Round 6 from 3-4 October at Suzuka Circuit before the 7th and final round at Mobility Resort Montegi from 21-22 November.
Wing Hin Motorsports Looks To Japan To Expand Its Driver Development Program![]()
![]()
Having won the Toyota GAZOO Racing GR86/BRZ Clubman Series last year, Malaysia’s Wing Hin Motorsports is doubling down on its’s presence in Japan to establish a gateway for the rise of racing talent from Asia.![]()
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In collaboration with Masahiro Sasaki, a Gazoo Racing and Rookie Racing driver, the Malaysian team will field two drivers at the opening of the 2026 Toyota GAZOO Racing GR86/BRZ Clubman Series this weekend as part of its Driver Development Program. Wing Hin Motorsports had won the Series in its debut last year with Naquib Azlan and also clinched a 4th place overall with a second Malaysian driver Amer Harris.![]()
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This year, Wing Hin Motorsports will field Malaysian touring car ace Mitchell Cheah and Indonesian Jordan Johan in the Series with Round 1 taking on the Autopolis Circuit.
