Written by Finn Glover, Edited by Tarun Suresh
Round 9 of the 2024 MotoGP circus heads to the Sachsenring for the German Grand Prix. With the series in the midst of a fiery championship battle, what can we expect from what seems to be another spectacular weekend for MotoGP?
Last year…
Last time out at the Sachsenring, it was Pramac’s Jorge Martin playing out victory after a thrilling battle with Pecco Bagnaia. They tussled for the last third of the race relentlessly and came into contact on the penultimate lap at the final corner.
There were also 8 Ducati’s in the top 9, their best performance of the year, only punctuated by the KTM of Jack Miller in 6th.
The ‘King of the Ring’ in Marc Marquez sat out for the second consecutive year after a few nasty accidents on the weekend, meaning that he has not won a race at the Sachsenring he has competed in since 2009.
Round 8: Assen
Last week, MotoGP put on a show at the ‘Cathedral’, holding the famed Dutch TT. It was Ducati domination, with Francesco Bagnaia taking two unchallenged victories in both the sprint and the main race. Jorge Martin and Enea Bastiannini rounded out a Ducati-filled podium- making for ominous signs for the rest of the field.
Their nearest challenges seem to be Aprillia, with Maverick Vinales, in particular, putting up a strong fight against the barrage of Ducati’s, gathering a sprint podium in the process.
Following a huge highside on Lap 1 at Turn 1, Yamaha rider Alex Rins will sit out the German Grand Prix. He will be replaced by GRT Yamaha World Superbike rider Remy Gardner. The Australian raced in MotoGP with Tech3 KTM in 2022, finishing P23 in the championship.
The top 5 in the championship is as follows:
1- Jorge Martin (Pramac) 200 Points
2- Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo) 190 Points
3- Marc Marquez (Gresini) 142 Points
4- Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo) 136 Points
5- Maverick Vinales (Aprilia) 119 Points
The Track
The Sachsenring offers a vastly different challenge for the riders from the previous round at Assen. The 2.281 mile circuit winds its way through the Saxony forest, consisting of 13 corners and two main straights.
The track is predominantly made up of long, slow-speed corners, with the first sector in particular being extremely accident-prone and challenging.
Following is a long sequence of left-handers, gradually increasing in speed, until you are spat onto the back straight on the run to the Sachsen Kurve, before a short dash to the final corner and up to the line.
There are two ‘conventional’ overtaking areas into T1 and T12. Yet the track lends itself to lots of divebomb opportunities aplenty, into the likes of the final corner, as shown by last year and Turn 3.
So, join us in watching MotoGP write its next chapter here in Germany! Pecco Bagnaia will be looking to continue his relentless charge and close the gap even more to championship leader Jorge Martin.
But, with the Sachsen ’king’ in Marc Marquez being seemingly fit and available, will he be able to make it 12 wins at the circuit he loves so much?
Or perhaps it’ll be somebody different, but it will take heaps of work, and maybe a bit of drama, to overhaul the Ducati domination at a track they have gone so well at.
The race starts at 1 PM BST (2 PM Local).
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