Ogura Ends 22-Year Wait with Historic MotoGP Victory as Danish Charges from P16 to Seventh at Assen

The Tissot Grand Prix of the Netherlands marked a landmark weekend for Asian motorsport, with Ai Ogura becoming the first Japanese rider to win a MotoGP race since 2004, while Malaysia's Hakim Danish fought from 16th on the grid to secure another strong Moto3 finish at Assen.

Premiere Class

Ogura's pace was evident from the opening day, finishing fifth in FP1 and third in FP2 before progressing comfortably into Q2. A disrupted qualifying session left the Trackhouse rider second on the grid, missing provisional pole by just 0.011 seconds before Jorge Martin secured top spot. The Sprint produced a Trackhouse one-two, with Ogura taking the holeshot before finishing second behind teammate Raul Fernandez.

Sunday's Grand Prix delivered a career-defining result. Ogura launched into the lead at Turn 1 before Martin reclaimed the position, while a fierce battle with Fernandez, Marc Marquez, and Marco Bezzecchi briefly dropped him to fifth. Bezzecchi's early crash removed the championship leader from contention, opening the door for Ogura to fight back through the field.

Despite briefly losing time with a stuck ride height device after setting the fastest lap of the race, Ogura recovered to pass Martin on lap 17 before overtaking Fernandez three laps later to seize the lead. From there, he controlled the closing stages to claim his maiden MotoGP victory, ending Japan's 22-year wait for a premier class winner since Makoto Tamada triumphed at Motegi in 2004. The result also moves Ogura to within 25 points of new championship leader Martin.

Moto3

Hakim Danish faced an uphill battle after finishing 11th in FP1 and 20th in FP2, leaving him to qualify through Q1 before securing 16th on the grid.

The race told a different story. A chaotic opening phase filled with incidents allowed the Malaysian to carve through the field, climbing into the top three by lap seven alongside Jesus Rios and eventual winner Maximo Quiles. Danish remained firmly in podium contention through the middle stages before the leading pair edged clear in the closing laps, leaving him to take seventh at the flag after another determined recovery drive.

Indonesia's Veda Pratama briefly led the race before crashing out at Turn 5, ending his challenge in one of the most unpredictable Moto3 races of the season.

Ogura's breakthrough victory and Danish's charge through the Moto3 field ensured Assen became another standout weekend for Asian representation on the world championship stage.