Marquez remains unbeaten for the eleventh race in a row at the Sachsenring. First MotoGP win for the Honda rider since November 2019. Moto2 driver Marcel Schrötter fights back strongly to finish in the top ten.

he king is back on his throne: after 581 days without a win in MotoGP, Spaniard Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) claimed his eleventh victory in a row at the Sachsenring, across all classes, at the 2021 LIQUI MOLY Motorcycle Grand Prix of Germany. The eight-time world champion finished 1.6 seconds clear of Portuguese runner-up Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), who had shadowed him for the majority of the race.

Victory at the Sachsenring ended a long barren stretch for Marquez: this is his first success since returning from injury, and his first podium of the 2021 MotoGP season. The 28-year-old only returned to MotoGP action at the Portuguese Grand Prix in April. His latest victory came in the season finale at Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia on 17th November 2019.

“That is one of the biggest and best moments of my career. It was not easy for me mentally. I came into the race on the back of a difficult period with three pointless races in a row. However, today was my day. Prior to this weekend, my goal was to challenge for the podium and be as close as possible to the top guys. Victory hardly seemed possible, but I definitely wanted to give it a shot if the chance arose. When I noticed some drops of rain after a few laps, I said to myself: this is my race. And it turned out to be just that,” said Marquez.

Behind Marquez and Oliveira, French championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) came home in third place. This result sees Quartararo extend his lead in the overall standings. His closest rival in the title race, Italian Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team), his Australian team-mate Jack Miller and Frenchman Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) finished fifth, sixth and eight to pick up valuable points. Italian motorcycle legend Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha SRT) ended the race in 14th place.

Great fightback from Marcel Schrötter in Moto2

Australian championship leader Remy Gardner (Red Bull KTM Ajo) won the 200th Moto2 race. Together with his team-mate Raul Fernandez from Spain, Gardner pulled clear from the rest of the field on lap one. When Fernandez crashed on lap five, the win was Gardner’s for the taking. Spain’s Aron Canet (Aspar Team Moto2) crossed the finish line in second place, 6.2 seconds behind the Australian, followed by Marco Bezzecchi (SKY Racing Team VR46) from Italy.

“To be honest, I did not know whether our pace would really be good enough. Raul was actually a little faster. When I passed him, I gave it everything and set some very fast lap times. After his crash, I suddenly had a five-second lead. However, I was able to manage the lead and even extend it in the final laps. That is a very important day for the championship,” said Gardner.

Local favourite Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly Intact GP) produced an impressive fightback to finish in the top ten. Starting from 17th on the grid, the 28-year-old made up four places on the opening lap. He then established himself in the chasing pack behind the two leaders and was ultimately rewarded for a fine performance with sixth place.

“I think we performed well to take sixth place. The Sachsenring is one of the toughest tracks to overtake on, so the prospects were not the greatest from 17th on the grid, particularly in such an evenly-matched class as Moto2,” said Schrötter.

More Moto3 magic from rookie Pedro Acosta

Spain’s Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) won a thrilling Moto3 race on the final lap to significantly extend his lead at the top of the world championship. The 17-year-old emerged triumphant from a leading group of nine bikes, which was separated by just 0.864 seconds as it crossed the finish line.

“That was the toughest win of the season for me. It is so difficult to manage the tyres over 27 laps. After two tough weekends, that feels really good. We have altered the way we work a little, and have restored a bit of confidence. This win is for me, my family, and the whole team,” said Acosta.

Second place went to Japanese rider Kaito Toba (CIP Green Power), with Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) third. The Italian benefitted from a penalty handed to Jeremy Alcoba (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3). The Spaniard failed to observe track limits on too many occasions and was relegated one position to fourth place.