MotoGP Grand Prix Germany – Marc Marquez claims Sachsenring double with dominant win

Marc Marquez tied the great Giacomo Agostini's record of 10 Grand Prix wins at a single circuit as he closed the gap at the top of the MotoGP championship standings by completing the double at Grand Prix Germany at the Sachsenring.

In a repeat performance of his Sprint victory a day earlier, Marquez led from lights to flag as he claimed his 10th Grand Prix race victory at the German circuit to complete a near-perfect weekend for the defending world champion.

Marquez's dominance saw him claim pole position in qualifying, followed by victory in the Sprint race and the Grand Prix race, plus the fastest lap of the Grand Prix, as he continued his dominance at the circuit in Saxony, Germany.

It was a big Sunday for the satellite Trackhouse Aprilia team, who claimed second and third on the podium, with Ai Ogura passing teammate Raul Fernandez late on to take second. They both took advantage of Alex Marquez's crash as the Gresini Ducati man slid off while running second in the race. KTM's Pedro Acosta had a lonely ride to secure fourth, while championship leader Jorge Martin made the best of a difficult weekend by holding off a hard-charging Francesco Bagnaia to finish fifth.

Marquez's successful weekend, coupled with a difficult weekend for Martin, means the reigning world champion has closed the gap to just 18 points as the season reaches its half-way mark. He sits third in the standings, with second-placed Ogura also closing in on top spot, 14 points behind leader Martin in the table.

The season now takes almost four weeks off before racing resumes at Silverstone on the weekend of August 7-9.

2. Ai Ogura - SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team - 194

3. Marc Marquez - Ducati Lenovo Team - 190

4. Marco Bezzecchi - Aprilia Racing - 186

5. Fabio Di Giannantonio - Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team - 184

6. Raul Fernandez - SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team - 159

7. Pedro Acosta - Red Bull KTM Factory Racing - 148

8. Francesco Bagnaia - Ducati Lenovo Team - 143

9. Alex Marquez - BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP - 87

10. Luca Marini - Honda HRC Castrol - 79

Marc Marquez produced another dominant ride to claim his second lights-to-flag victory of the weekend at Sachsenring as he continued his incredible form at the German circuit.

"Yeah, super, super happy. It was a special weekend," he said after his Grand Prix race victory.

"I was super concentrated because, as I said on Thursday, if I want to have a chance to win the championship, I need to attack here, and we attacked.

"The fact is that we need to do the things when we feel strong, so it's what we did these last (few) races."

Marquez's win meant that he'd claimed his 10th MotoGP race win at Sachsenring, which has been a happy hunting ground for the world champion over the years.

"Yeah, super happy to achieve 10 victories in MotoGP class here in Sachsenring. It's a special number. Thank you to all the crowd, to all the fans."

Ai Ogura might not have been turning cartwheels in pit lane, but the undemonstrative Japanese rider was happy to have fought his way past teammate Raul Fernandez and claim a second-place finish at Grand Prix Germany.

"I'm so happy about today," he said after the race at Sachsenring.

"(It was a) better Sunday than I expected, so now I think we can be super, super happy for this for this podium ,for the second place.

"It was really tough to overtake Raul, but at the end we managed to pass him and finish second, and to have OK pace until the end. So yeah, a lot to take from this weekend ... really happy."

Trackhouse Aprilia racer Raul Fernandez revealed that he rode through the pain barrier to secure third place in the Grand Prix race at Sachsenring, and paid tribute to his physio for helping get him into good enough shape to complete the full race distance after picking up a back injury during yesterday's Tissot Sprint race.

"I'm really happy. I never thought that I was able to make a podium here in Sachsenring, especially in MotoGP, because it's a Marquez track. So yeah, I'm really happy," he said.

"Today I have a very important person on my mind. It's my head of physio, because yesterday I had a very hard movement on the bike, and I feel very blocked in my back. In the first three laps, I was not really comfortable with my body, but also in the last three laps, I was done. So yeah, I am really happy, so thanks to the team."

1. Marc Marquez - Ducati Lenovo Team - 40:53.14

2. Ai Ogura - SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team - +1.996

3. Raul Fernandez - SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team - +5.104

4. Pedro Acosta - Red Bull KTM Factory Racing - +7.684

5. Jorge Martin - Aprilia Racing - +11.372

6. Francesco Bagnaia - Ducati Lenovo Racing - +11.495

7. Fabio Quartararo - Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team - +17.560

8. Luca Marini - Honda HRC Castrol - +18.683

9. Enea Bastianini - Red Bull KTM Tech3 - +19.140

10. Brad Binder - Red Bull KTM Factory Racing - +22.137

11. Diogo Moreira - Pro Honda LCR - +22.280

12. Jack Miller - Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP - +26.154

13. Franco Morbidelli - Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team - +30.910

14. Alex Rins - Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team - +31.511

15. Toprak Razgatlioglu - Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP - +38.122

Another race at Sachsenring, and another easy win for Marc Marquez, who cruises to victory in the Grand Prix race in Germany for another lights-to-flag win.

He finishes two seconds clear of Ai Ogura in second, with the Japanese racer's Trackhouse Aprilia teammate Raul Fernandez in third.

Pedro Acosta takes a lonely fourth, while Jorge Martin holds off a hard-charging Francesco Bagnaia for fifth.

It's been a nightmare weekend for Maverick Vinales, who pulls his KTM into pit lane to retire from the race.

The battle to watch on track is now the fight for fifth, as Pecco Bagnaia looks to force his way past Jorge Martin.

The pair have been in close proximity for the last five or six laps, but now Bagnaia has decided the time has come to make a concerted effort to get past.

He hasn't quite managed it yet, but he's putting the championship leader under a LOT of pressure in the closing laps.

Ai Ogura gets great drive out of the last corner, lines up his teammate and passes Raul Fernandez into Turn 1 to take second place.

While Marquez disappears off into the distance, all the attention is on the battle for second.

Ai Ogura is within half a second of Raul Fernandez, and will be looking to force a mistake from his teammate in the closing laps.

It's so tough to pass at the Sachsenring, especially when you're battling someone on identical machinery, so Ogura will be hoping that he has a bit more left in his tyres, or that Fernandez makes an error, in order to get past and secure second place.

With 11 laps to go, the field is starting to get stretched out at Sachsenring.

Marc Marquez is in a commanding 2.1-second lead over Raul Fernandez, who just doesn't have the pace to close in.

Ai Ogura is third, and is starting to close in on his Trackhouse Aprilia teammate. But the Japanese racer is the only one who seems to be making forward progress.

Pedro Acosta is in a comfortable fourth, with championship leader Jorge Martin four and a half seconds adrift, in fifth.

Marc Marquez has seen Fernandez's improved pace, and raised his own to extend his lead to nearly 1.7 seconds.

The world champion is in complete control of this Grand Prix, and it seems only a mistake, or a dramatic fall-off in tyre performance, can stop him here.

Raul Fernandez isn't happy to just sit in second. He's turned up the pace, and has shaved a tenth of a second off Marc Marquez's lead. He'll need to find a bit more pace, or for Marquez's pace to drop off, before it starts to get really interesting, but the Trackhouse man is pushing hard in a bid to close the gap.

Marc Marquez is in a comfortable lead out front, with Raul Fernandez trying to chip away at the world champion's lead.

Fernandez's teammate and noted tyre-whisperer Ai Ogura is third, and could potentially come into the equation as the laps count down, but he's got Pedro Acosta for company. They're a second and a half clear of championship leader Jorge Martin in fifth.

Alex Marquez is OUT of the Grand Prix!

He loses the front end going into Turn 13, slides off and out of the race.

It leaves Marc Marquez out on his own, with a 1.4-second lead over Raul Fernandez. Can the Aprilia man close the gap? Against Marquez, at the Spaniard's best circuit, that's a hell of a task.

Joan Mir has lost the front end of his Honda and his race is done.

It's another DNF in a disappointing season for Mir, whose Grand Prix lasts just eight laps.

Alex Marquez is right in brother Marc's wheeltracks, but will he dare put a move on his sibling?

It's a question that many have mentioned about the younger Marquez brother, and whether he has the same cut-throat aggression needed to put one over his brother in wheel-to-wheel race action.

It's not something we've seen too often in the past, but with Alex seemingly right on the pace with his brother, it's another chance for him to prove that he's not just content to finish second to his brother.

Hot on the heels of his practice crash, Fabio Di Giannantonio has crashed out of the race!

He loses the front end going into Turn 10. It's only his second race crash of the season, and shows just how hard these riders are pushing the limits in these early laps.

Rider looks OK. He's up and away from his bike.

Factory Aprilia rider and championship leader Jorge Martin is in damage limitation mode after struggling to hook up his bike at the tight, twisty Sachsenring circuit.

He's done well in the early laps, and is already up to sixth.