Assen, The Netherlands

Editor's Blog: Happy New Year, KTM Issues Bonds, RIP Bob MacLean, Economic Impact of Assen

By David Emmett |

Happy 2025! With the motorcycle racing year warming up, here's a round up of some of the more significant things to happen over the holiday break. There were more developments around KTM, the sad passing of former WCM owner Bob MacLean, and riders have been speaking to the press.

KTM - EGM convened, control to be ceded?

2025 Provisional WorldSBK Calendar Announced: 12 Races, 2 Continents

By David Emmett |

The FIM and Dorna have announced the provisional WorldSBK calendar for the 2025 season. The calendar has a familiar look, with 12 races, kicking off at the end of February at Phillip Island. 

The Australian round is the only race outside of Europe once more. Though there are persistent rumors that Dorna is working on other races outside of Europe, they have been unable to sign contracts for them just yet. The WorldSBK series will visit the Balaton Park Circuit in Hungary for the first time this year, though they were scheduled to go in 2024 and that round was canceled.

2025 Provisional MotoGP Calendar: 22 Races, Kazakhstan, India Out, Hungary, Brno In

By David Emmett |

The 2025 MotoGP calendar has been published at last, at least in its provisional form. The calendar contains 22 rounds, starting on March 2nd at Buriram in Thailand, and ending as usual at Valencia on November 16th.

The calendar looks a little different this year, in several different ways. Firstly, Qatar is now the fourth round, being held in mid April, rather than the first round. Argentina and Austin follow the season opener in Thailand, with MotoGP heading back to Europe after Qatar.

Jerez and Le Mans are in their traditional places, at the end of April and the middle of May respectively, before MotoGP heads to Silverstone, and a much earlier date for the British GP at the end of May. From the UK, the series heads back to Spain, to Aragon, again a much earlier race at the beginning of June. From Aragon, the series heads to Mugello in the middle of June, in a race that is back-to-back with Assen.

Assen MotoGP Post-Race Subscriber Notes: Bagnaia's Reign, Ducati's Michelin Mastery, And Tire Pressure Injustice

By David Emmett |

The Dutch TT at Assen is in glorious good health. On a coolish, windy, partly overcast and partly sunny day, nearly 109,000 fans packed the TT Circuit, some 1200 fans shy of officially selling out. They came for a lot of reasons: tradition - the circuit was handing out certificates to fans for their 50th, 60th, and even 70th attendance at the event - location, and because of the excellent state MotoGP is in at the moment.

It certainly helped that the Dutch fans have a local hero to cheer for, Collin Veijer coming within three corners of immortality before Ivan Ortolá snatched victory from him in Moto3. But given there were only 3,000 more fans at Assen than in 2023, there is not much room for the extra fans Veijer might bring in.

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