Dre’s Race Review – MotoGP’s 2025 German GP

“…Did you really think this was going to go down any differently?”

Hey everyone, Dre back at it once again with another double header of Dre’s Race Review, and this time, MotoGP is back to a fan favourite venue – Germany and the Sachsenring. And well…

…ah who am I kidding, you know exactly who doubled up this weekend and you probably didn’t even need to see the picture on the outside to do so. Reading this article feels like charity to me more than anything else. Alright, let’s try to make some sense of this.

Marquez vs Marquez

It’s becoming the most common phrase to use when describing Marc Marquez in his new life on a factory Ducati, but it really does ring true that right now, the only person who can beat Marc right now, is himself. And Saturday’s Sprint Race and prep for it was the definition of everything great and occasionally bad, about Marc in life after Honda.

Marc looked ultra-comfortable on Friday in the dry. Didn’t even bother going for a final hot run, letting Fabio Di Giannantonio take the all-time lap record in practice, four tenths quicker than Jorge Martin’s 2024 pole position. Marc was on the same Hard/Medium tyre combo that was likely going to be the race tyre, and even more so given Saturday had rain on the bill.

Marc did enough to shave off a couple of tenths when he needed to in Qualifying to take pole ahead of a great effort from Johann Zarco at a very wet track. But on the start, Marc broke too deep into Turn 1, nearly ran into the gravel and dropped to fifth on the opening lap. Marquez quickly dispatched Zarco, who made a bad call on the medium wet compound, and Franco Morbidelli had a huge crash at Turn 8 that gave him a shoulder contusion that bumped Marc back up to third.

He passed Fabio Quartararo, going half a second a lap faster than the Yamaha Ace, but nearly lost the rear on the exit of Turn 2, which would have been a hellacious highside. But Marc admitted, he saw his pass, the only man in the 1:28’s, and the time he was gaining on Marco Bezzecchi in the lead, and he went for the win.

And of course, despite some wobbles, he picks Bez off at the end of the race, passing him on the exit of Turn 1 on the final lap, sweeping around the outside and tucking back in at Turn 2. Marc nearly crashed three times in a 15 lap Sprint, and was still half a second faster than the field when it mattered most, and took his 10th Sprint win of 2025, breaking Jorge Martin’s record for most Sprint Wins in a season. 

I don’t think there’s anything more Marc Marquez than nearly losing control, and still being so breakneck fast it just doesn’t matter. 

Turn 1 of Poor Judgement

The race was a different ordeal entirely. The rain stayed away on Sunday and we had a dry race, with just 18 riders starting due to the injuries:

• Both Tech 3’s out (Vinales crashed in qualifying, breaking a bone in his shoulder, Bastianini out via appendicitis)
• Somkiat Chantra out via an injured LCL in a training crash
• Franco Morbidelli out with a shoulder contusion from the Sprint.

Lowest number of runners on a starting grid since Australia 2023. And it was a pretty bog standard start, with Marquez taking the holeshot ahead of Bez, Diggia and Alex Marquez. Diggia got back to second, backing up his strong practice pace on Friday. But then all of a sudden, out of nowhere, the Turn 1 of Poor Judgement returned.

The Sachsenring is a nasty bastard of a track. Technically clockwise, but anti-clockwise as it turns back over the top of itself. Turn 1 is a downhill, blind, off camber hairpin you take at less than 40mph. Not to mention the nature of the track itself. From the top of the waterfall to the end of the lap and the whole main straight, it’s nothing but left handers. It’s a good 25-second sequence where that side of the tyre goes cold. And it’s very, VERY easy to tuck the front and crash at that corner if you’re not careful. And well… guess what happened.

Diggia crashes from second on the road. Bez then followed it up a couple of laps later with a crash from an inherited second, with Johann Zarco crashing seconds after Diggia’s fall.. Then Ai Ogura lost the front into Turn 1 and collected Joan Mir with him, the Spaniard’s seventh DNF of the season in just 11 races. And just to put the cherry on top, Aprilia’s test rider Lorenzo Savadori lost it in the middle of what was a yellow flag zone, taking a Double Long Lap Penalty in the process. Welp.

It meant by the time the dust settled, we had just 10 riders finish the race, only the second time since 1990 a MotoGP race finished with so few riders, and the first of its kind since Australia 2011. 

And of course, it was Marc Marquez at the front of it all, winning by seven seconds, ahead of his brother, who will gladly take second in his first race back just 14 days after breaking a bone in his finger, and Pecco Bagnaia, who had been nowhere all weekend, taking third.

I love that despite all the crazy, it ended up with the most common front three of riders we’ve had in 2025. And for Marc Marquez – Career Win #69 on his 200th start. A near 35% win-rate in the top-flight, with 120 podium finishes, 73 pole positions and 6 World Championships, and now an 83-point lead as we approach half way on the road to Number 7. It’s looking ominous.

The Lightning Round

If Bez had stayed second, it would have guaranteed Aprilia stay out of Tier D of the concession system after the Brno checkpoint next week. Now he crashed, Aprilia needs 17 points. Tricky task…

Why does Dorna insist on showing Thomas, Fabio Quartararo’s assistant on camera every time something happens to him on track? 

Sadly, no points for any of the crashers, none of them made 75% distance to be classified a finisher. 

In Moto2 Diogo Moreira did himself no favours. An excellent restart to go from 25th on the grid to 4th, before getting cut off by Jake Dixon at Turn 3, and then a hellaciously dangerous rejoin with David Alonso smashing into the back of him. Luckily, both men were okay. Moreira rightly got a pitlane start for his incompetent riding, and he was lucky he wasn’t told to sit out a weekend. 

So, Alvaro Carpe in Moto3 was dinged with a Long Lap Penalty for punting someone wide, even though it didn’t result in a crash. Interesting new possible precedent shown, but I do want to know where the line is, given David Munoz punted Jose Antonio Rueda at the final corner to win the race and was only given a slap of the wrist.

And finally, the grim side of Motorsport reared its ugly head. The tributes to Borja Gomez have been heartwarming, for many, he was a friend. But when you hear about the shambles behind the scenes, this from Mat Oxley on Twitter:

“Such a fucking massive disgrace… From an old racer friend: “I was at Magny Cours last week. There were NO marshals on Thursday at all. Three boys fell off on oil, all were OK. They agreed that two would run up the circuit to slow other riders down. Gomez went onto the circuit to try to pull his bike off the line and was ran into by a following rider while trying to pick his bike up. Two of the boys tried to help but he was killed instantly. The ambulance took 15 minutes to arrive. The officials claimed it was an unofficial ‘practice session’ organised by the circuit. Half the field in that class refused to race in protest. 1970’s style organisation in 2025.”

And now we have multiple parties around Motorsport that are refusing to take responsibility for the weekend and its horrendous results. Gomez’s family deserve answers and a full inquiry into how he passed away. This should be a national story. It isn’t. And that infuriates me, especially given – Let’s be frank, the only time bike racing is mainstream news IS when someone dies. 

The Verdict: 4/10 (Poor) – It’s MotoGP in Germany. We’ve probably out-grown this track from a speed standpoint half a decade ago, and with these bikes and downforce, once the front tyre pressures go up, following is nearly impossible, and it showed as the bikes spread out. A shame given this track pulls in nearly 100k on race day. Alas. See you back in Brno.