MotoGP, History repeats itself in Assen: Bagnaia like Stoner, Quartararo like Rossi

History sometimes enjoys repeating itself, and it seems to have definitely done that in Holland last Sunday. Before then, Ducati had only won once on the Assen circuit, in 2008 with Casey Stoner. The Australian rider had started from a pole position and commanded the race from start to finish, just like Pecco Bagnaia.

But that’s not the only similarity between the two GPs. Valentino Rossi had arrived in Holland at the top of the championship and, like Quartararo, made a mistake at the fifth corner, making Randy De Puniet fall. The Doctor was luckier than Fabio because he managed to get back up on his feet and finish the race, like Aleix Espargarò, so to speak. If the Aprilia rider (who was lucky enough not to fall) arrived at the foot of the podium on Sunday, Valentino instead had to settle for an 11th place (46 seconds from the winner; 46, for those who love numerology).

After that GP, Rossi lost command of the championship, favoring Dani Pedrosa (2nd on the podium), but he still managed to win the title at the end of the year.

Watch the video from motogp.com that compares the two races.