Norman Rank on Assen winner Ai Ogura: “It was on the cards!”

Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) has won the Grand Prix at Assen. A historic moment – it was the first Japanese victory in the premier class since Makoto Tamada’s win in 2004. Until 2024, German crew chief Norman Rank worked alongside the Japanese rider – he had mentored Ogura for eight years, starting from the Asia Talent Cup. Rank currently works for Marc VDS in the Moto2 World Championship. During their time together, the two developed almost a brotherly bond, which was crowned in 2024 with the Moto2 World Championship title.

Even after his various commitments in Assen, Ogura didn’t really celebrate in a big way, even later amongst a small group of close friends. Norman Rank reported: “We’d already seen each other in the parc fermé. We met up again in the truck and celebrated together. Ai doesn’t have his own motorhome, after all. But then Ai had to head to Amsterdam Airport; he flew back to Japan. He always does that this year whenever there aren’t any back-to-back weekends. Otherwise, he travels to Barcelona.”

Commenting on the victory at Assen, Rank said: “It was on the cards! Ai is a completely different sort of rider to Marc Marquez or Valentino Rossi. He always says he tries to give his answer on the track. If he ever finishes third, it just means two others were better on the day.” Rank can only smile at Ogura’s rather terse answers to the press. “That’s just how he is. People think they can get something out of him. But he’s well aware of it. He’s not like the Japanese of old either – he speaks perfect English.”

Some observers cannot understand Ogura’s impending move to Yamaha for the 2027 season. “The people commenting now don’t really know what they’re talking about. If Aprilia had made him an offer, he would have stayed 99.9 per cent of the time. But I also believe that Yamaha will be back in the running with this manpower.”

“A factory team is simply something completely different. It’s all about the support, the manpower, the updates and much more,” emphasised Rank. “The duo is top-class: Jorge Martín and the cool, steady Ogura. I think it was a clever move by Yamaha. In 2027, the bikes and tyres will be new. If Ai hadn’t made the move to the factory team, he would have had to wait until 2029.”

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09.10.2026 - 02:55