Attritional German GP matches record for fewest finishers in MotoGP era

When only 10 riders made it to the chequered flag in the MotoGP German Grand Prix, it equalled the record for the lowest number of finishers in a premier class race since the end of the 500cc era.

Since the MotoGP era began in 2002, only the 2011 Australian Grand Prix has ended with as few finishers as Sunday’s race at the Sachsenring.

But the 2025 German GP, with its 18 starters, was more attritional in percentage terms than Australia 2011. A mere 14 riders started that race at Phillip Island, after an already slim entry of 17 lost three further competitors. Jorge Lorenzo, Damian Cudlin and Ben Spies all withdrew from the grand prix due to accidents earlier in the weekend.

Before the advent of MotoGP in 2002, however, there were multiple examples of fewer finishers to a race in the premier class of the motorcycle world championship.

Only four riders completed the 500cc West German Grand Prix in 1974. That race, held in April on the Nurburgring Nordschleife, featured only seven starters – and presumably some lengthy silent spells for spectators – as home rider Edmund Czihak took the win for Yamaha.

Most of the eight retirees at this year’s German GP fell victim to the Sachsenring’s notorious first corner, in a flurry of accidents late in the race. However, Pedro Acosta’s low-side crash came at Turn 2 early in the contest – and Miguel Oliveira also crashed elsewhere on the track.

Among the mitigating circumstances for today’s low number of finishers was the fact that Joan Mir didn’t make a riding mistake of his own on his way to the Turn 1 gravel trap. Rather, he was collected by the Trackhouse Aprilia of Ai Ogura, making it a case of two falls from one error.

Another factor was that this race featured the lowest number of starters in 2025. While the regular number of contenders in a MotoGP race this year stands at 22, there were four absentees by the time Sunday came around in Germany.

Somkiat Chantra (training accident) and Enea Bastianini (appendicitis) withdrew before the weekend. Then, on a wet Saturday, both Maverick Vinales and Franco Morbidelli were injured in accidents and were forced to pull out of the rest of the event.