ACOSTA WINS SEPANG SPRINT AHEAD OF MARC MARQUEZ; BEZZECCHI THIRD, ALEX ON POLE, MARTIN WITHDRAWS

Alex Marquez recovered from a difficult start at Sepang to finish second in Friday’s MotoGP time trial, just 0.109 seconds behind the fastest rider. His late charge made him the closest challenger to brother Marc, after a morning session that had left him seventh and nearly a second off the pace.

The result was a striking turnaround for the Ducati rider, whose recent record at the Malaysian circuit includes two podiums in 2025 and the fastest overall time at the Sepang test. Despite those credentials, he struggled in FP1, finishing behind Franco Morbidelli and three KTM riders.

Marquez said the team made extensive changes before the afternoon session. “The morning went completely wrong, very different from what we expected,” he explained. Once they fitted a soft rear tyre, he said, “everything came together and worked.” He added that he felt confident in his speed and was not riding “at the absolute limit.”

His time of 1:57.1 was 2.8 seconds quicker than his morning pace. Marquez said the lap was close to what he had anticipated and not far from his previous year’s performance. He recorded a 1:57.0 at Sepang in 2025, while his best at the February test was 1:56.4.

KTM also had reason to be encouraged: Pedro Acosta placed fourth, Enea Bastianini was seventh despite a crash, and Maverick Viñales reached Q2 directly for the first time since the Sachsenring in July 2025. Only Ducati put more bikes into the top 10. Both Tech3 riders made Q2 for the first time this season. Viñales improved from 16th in FP1 to eighth, just 0.002 seconds behind Bastianini. Acosta said KTM was “not far behind Marc Marquez” at 0.4 seconds, though he was unhappy with the front-end feel and braking. He said race pace was unexpectedly strong.

Viñales said his shoulder was limiting him less after treatment for inflammation. “The pain is the only limiting factor,” he said. “The less pain, the better the speed.” He was surprised by his lap times but felt a lack of recent high-speed practice had cost him precision. His priority was Sunday’s race.

Acosta also warned that Sepang’s deteriorating asphalt was shedding stones and pieces, creating a risk of front-wheel slides. Marquez said the surface felt much as it had a year earlier, with some sections “borderline,” but riders had to adapt.

Marco Bezzecchi qualified directly for Q2 in sixth, calling Friday a “clear step forward” compared with last year. Joan Mir was the fastest Honda rider in 10th after returning from illness and said, “I’m very happy. I didn’t expect to be in the top 10.”

On Saturday, Alex Marquez took pole by 0.070 seconds from Marc, with Acosta third. Jorge Martin, still recovering from a fracture of his right wrist, withdrew from the Malaysian Grand Prix before qualifying. He had tried to ride on Friday without surgery, a cast or a stabilising brace, but finished last in FP1, around 2.5 seconds off Marc’s best. After three laps in Friday’s time trial, he stopped for the day; he then completed eight laps in FP2 on Saturday, ending 21st and 1.5 seconds off the pace.

Aprilia confirmed Martin would miss the rest of the event to recover. Team manager Paolo Bonora said, “The pain for Jorge was too great. We decided together that it was better to work as quickly as possible to improve the situation.” Martin was to return to Spain and try to be fit for Qatar. His withdrawal meant he left Sepang without points, while Marc—who started second—had another opportunity to protect his lead. The new report said Martin was also expected to miss Qatar, leaving him little time to recover.

The field was further reduced when Raul Fernandez withdrew because of a hand injury. Fermin Aldeguer and Toprak Razgatlioglu were also absent through injury, with Iker Lecuona and Fernandez named as replacements. The top five in qualifying—Alex Marquez, Marc Marquez, Acosta, Ai Ogura and Bezzecchi—then shaped the sprint.

Alex led away, but Ogura passed Marc for second and Acosta also moved ahead of the reigning champion. Rain clouds gathered, with light drops appearing on parts of the circuit. Alex crashed from the lead on lap three, handing first place to Ogura. Joan Mir, Lecuona and Franco Morbidelli gambled on rain tyres on lap five, but the track remained largely dry and those riders lost around ten seconds. The hot, roughly 50-degree asphalt evaporated the light rain as it landed.

Acosta took the lead from Ogura on lap eight, while Marc also passed the Japanese rider. Bezzecchi moved past Ogura on the penultimate lap, setting up a three-way fight for the podium. Acosta stayed mistake-free to claim his second sprint win of the year, 0.7 seconds ahead of Marc, with Bezzecchi third. Ogura, Fabio Di Giannantonio, Francesco Bagnaia, Brad Binder, Diogo Moreira and Bastianini completed the points finishers. Heavy rain arrived only seconds after the flag, too late to reward the riders who had switched tyres.

Acosta said the conditions did not usually suit him, but he chose to try a different approach. He credited KTM’s work improving the front of the bike for giving him the confidence to ride that way, adding: “I had nothing to lose.” The win was his second sprint victory and third overall in MotoGP since joining the class in 2024. He also gained five points on championship rival Ogura, who finished fourth.

Bezzecchi said the opening laps were “super, super hard” and full of intense battles. He held fifth for much of the race, saving something for the finish, then passed Aprilia teammate Ogura to secure the podium. As the rain intensified, he closed on the riders ahead and said he had hoped to attack Marc too, but “I wasn’t close enough early enough.” He was satisfied with third and turned his attention to Sunday’s Grand Prix.

Marc’s second place earned nine points and extended his championship advantage over Martin to 19 points. He said the mixed conditions made mistakes easy and that he deliberately stayed calm rather than taking the extra risk required to lead. “The one in front is normally the one who crashes,” he said, adding that the potential reward was only three more points. “A race like this is no pleasure; it was hard work.”

Marc recalled previous wet-weather errors, including crashes at Aragon in 2014 and Jerez earlier that year, and said he aimed to stay behind the leader and ahead of Bezzecchi. Rain varied across the circuit, and he nearly fell at Turn 14. He also explained that passing Ogura was important because he did not want the Aprilia rider to finish between him and Bezzecchi. Martin’s absence, he insisted, did not change his approach: “If I have to be aggressive, I am. And when I had to stay calm, I stayed calm.” Bezzecchi’s sprint points cut his gap to Martin to 33, ensuring he would leave Malaysia third in the standings.