The 68th victory that pins Marc Marquez to Giacomo Agostini - the King of Kings in a time so different from the present - is worth double its weight in gold. Because it means digging a chasm between his two pursuers, Alex Marquez and Pecco Bagnaia.
And while he may not have been pleased that due to an unintentional fall in a light collision with Acosta his brother suffered a fractured metacarpal in his left hand, thanks to Bezzecchi's second place Marc had the gift of an additional 9 points over his teammate.
The result is an unequivocal +68 over Alex and even +126 over Pecco with a race that also gave an answer to those who, on Saturday, branded the youngest of the Marquez riders as uncompetitive for not attacking his elder brother.
The Aprilia rider, in fact, left no stone unturned but failed to place a single attack on the Ducati leader who appeared to be always in control so much so as to deserve from the Aprilia rider an unequivocal "but how did you manage to stop the bike so well at turn 1?" A direct compliment, pronounced in the immediate post-race, while the protagonists were waiting to get on the podium, which confirms that the eight-time world champion had the bike, and the Grand Prix, in hand.
He sure did, because just as at Mugello, Marc Marquez showed up at Assen fearing statistics that were anything but favorable, only to confirm however that he was simply unassailable in the race, though not entirely unapproachable during practice.
It has already been realized by his MotoGP rivals, who were allowed to run wild from 2020 to 2023, that Marc Marquez is made of rubber and steel. A combination of flexibility and tenacity that makes him simply the best rider on the grid.
It's true: he needed to leave Honda to become what he is and always has been, but not even the best - as even the great Agostini proved in the past - can do without the best bike. And then it is always the case: the fastest rider ends up with the fastest bike in his hands.
A tool, by the way, that he not only has, but also, with minor differences, so do as many as five other riders. So, gentlemen detractors, how much longer does it take you, fans aside, to accept a fact?
You cannot of course, take anything away from those who world championships have won in the absence of the one who has been the true ruler of the category since 2013, but we take the liberty to weigh them. Because that's how it works in sports: whoever wins is always right, but it is in the logic of our work to interpret and put on the scales what we see.
Now the question is how long will this domination last?
For the moment Marc is playing the role of the heavyweight who enters the ring already intimidating his opponents with his presence, but it is also true that his is not just strength: he possesses technique to spare and his braking amounts to barrage jabs that prevent his opponents from getting within range, and as I said at the beginning, the steel and rubber of which he is made allowed him to dominate Assen despite two crashes that would have sapped riders less complete than him.
So, OK: Bezzecchi today, Alex yesterday, Bagnaia himself are tough and talented opponents: only Marc Marquez has more talent, resilience, we don't want to say courage because everyone on the track is courageous, but speed yes, confidence yes. Let the professional denigrators get over it to whom we give another detail to think about: Marc Marquez never looks for an excuse.
As they always say in sports, those who win celebrate, those who lose look for excuses, and after 10 Grands Prix and 10 Sprints it would also be the case to stop talking about the past, and how good they were, all of them, until 2023.
In 2023 Marc was the thunder announcing the storm.
"At Assen I won one more time without being the best. I hit the big target, 37 points, but Alex got hurt, he is my main opponent, and I want him on the track. Today no one attacked me, and behind me was not my brother. Simply if the person in front brakes hard and defends well, you can't overtake."
Game. Set. Match.