After the first few corners, there is a collision at the back of the field – Ai Ogura is out – Miguel Oliveira continues at first before giving up
The first sector of the Assen circuit is relatively narrow and slow. After the first three right-hand corners, the slow Turn 5 follows. There, a harmonica effect occurred at the start at the rear of the field.
Ai Ogura (Trackhouse-Aprilia) and Miguel Oliveira (Pramac-Yamaha) went off the track into the gravel trap at the exit of the Strubben corner (turn 5). Oliveira’s teammate Jack Miller briefly left the track but braked before reaching the gravel trap.
Ogura crashed in the gravel trap and was out of the race. Oliveira was initially able to continue. What exactly happened in this chain reaction? “I had another good start, immediately made up three positions, everything was going smoothly,” reported the Portuguese rider.
“But in turn 5, Zarco dived in on the inside, right behind two other riders. Jack was behind him and braked just as I opened the throttle. At that moment, I touched his rear wheel and was almost thrown off my bike.“
”Luckily, Ogura was there and basically kept me upright. We both went off the track, he crashed, but I was able to continue the race.” The Japanese rider was not injured in the incident.
“It’s a shame that our weekend ended this way, but these things happen,” sighed the MotoGP rookie. “I was on the outside, so I couldn’t avoid the riders who collided with each other.”
Oliveira initially remained in the race and came into the pits at the end of the first lap. “My front fairing was broken and the handlebars were bent,” he said of the damage. “I tried to continue anyway, went to the pits to change the fairing, and went back out.”
“I was hoping for a red flag. But after a few laps, I had to give up. It’s a shame because I really felt that a strong race was possible – maybe in the top 10. But we’ll never know. In the end, we’re going home without any points.”
Overall, it was a difficult race for Yamaha. Fabio Quartararo, who started from pole position, had to swerve to avoid Fermin Aldeguer after he crashed across the grass. The former world champion eventually finished tenth.
Alex Rins finished 13th and Miller 14th after the incident on lap 1. Yamaha remains in fifth and last place in the manufacturers’ standings, 30 points behind Honda in fourth.
