RACE REPORT | MotoGP Malaysia 2025

The 2025 Malaysian Grand Prix gave fans another exciting MotoGP race under sunny skies. From Bagnaia’s fast start to Márquez’s strong win, there was plenty of action with overtakes, yellow flags and close battles all through the race. Pedro Acosta and Joan Mir joined Márquez on the podium after a tense 20-lap battle that kept fans watching closely. Marc Márquez, already confirmed as the 2025 MotoGP World Champion, did not take part in the race due to a injury sustained in Japan.

The race began after a short warm-up lap in perfect weather. Like on Saturday, Bagnaia got away brilliantly, while Morbidelli had a poor launch and quickly dropped down the order. Acosta made a strong start and climbed to second place, only for Alex Márquez to overtake him soon after. Joan Mir, starting from the middle of the pack, was running seventh and putting pressure on Morbidelli, who continued to lose ground.

After the opening lap, the top ten read: Bagnaia, Márquez, Acosta, Quartararo, Aldeguer, Morbidelli, Mir, Zarco, Marini, and Di Giannantonio. A lap later, Márquez found his moment and passed Bagnaia to take the lead. Although Bagnaia tried to counter, Márquez began to stretch out a small but steady gap. Acosta stayed close behind, waiting for a chance to attack, while Mir slipped past both Morbidelli and Aldeguer when the latter ran wide.

Acosta made his first attempt to overtake Bagnaia at Turn 4 but couldn’t make it stick. Most of the grid opted for soft tyres front and rear, while Bagnaia went for a medium front compound—a choice that would later affect his pace. Their battle continued for several laps, thrilling the Sepang crowd.

Pol Espargaró’s crash in Sector 2 brought out the first yellow flag, as Márquez led by about a second from Bagnaia. Midway through the race, Mir finally got the better of Quartararo after several laps of pressure, while Acosta once again closed in on Bagnaia. The following moments saw more drama when Miguel Oliveira and Raúl Fernández both went down in Sector 1, prompting double yellow flags.

Quartararo’s race took a turn as he ran wide, allowing Morbidelli to move past him. Not long after, Acosta finally completed his move on Bagnaia and secured second place.
By lap 15, the top ten were: Márquez, Acosta, Bagnaia, Mir, Morbidelli, Quartararo, Aldeguer, Di Giannantonio, Zarco, and Marini. Quartararo began to fade due to tyre wear, while Marini’s attempts to pass Zarco were hampered by his own worn tyres.

In the closing stages, Aldeguer crashed out in Sector 4, and shortly after, Bagnaia ran off the track with what appeared to be a technical issue, forcing him to retire in the pits. Up front, Alex Márquez controlled the pace with a comfortable two-second lead over Acosta. Behind them, Binder overtook Zarco as the Frenchman struggled in the final laps.

With two laps to go, the order was: Márquez, Acosta, Mir, Morbidelli, Quartararo, Di Giannantonio, Bastianini, Marini, Binder, and Ogura. The final lap brought no changes—Alex Márquez took his third victory of the season, Acosta claimed a strong second, and Mir completed the podium with third place.

Race results – 2025 Malaysian Grand Prix

1st – Alex Márquez (Ducati)
2nd – Pedro Acosta (KTM) +2.676
3rd – Joan Mir (Honda) +8.048
4th – Franco Morbidelli (Ducati) +8.580
5th – Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +11.556
6th – Fabio Di Giannantonio (Ducati) +13.060
7th – Enea Bastianini (KTM) +15.299
8th – Luca Marini (Honda) +18.738
9th – Brad Binder (KTM) +18.932
10th – Ai Ogura (Aprilia) +19.256
11th – Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +19.824
12th – Johann Zarco (Honda) +22.509
13th – Alex Rins (Yamaha) +23.509
14th – Jack Miller (Yamaha) +25.201
15th – Somkiat Chantra (Honda) +34.110
16th – Lorenzo Savadori (Aprilia) +36.115
17th – Michele Pirro (Ducati) +43.914
18th – Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +47.060
19th – Miguel Oliveira (Yamaha) +1:17.942

DNF – Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati)
DNF – Fermín Aldeguer (Ducati)
DNF – Raúl Fernández (Aprilia)
DNF – Pol Espargaró (KTM)