In Sepang, Italian rider Enea Bastianini, riding a Ducati, celebrated victory at the Malaysian Grand Prix, the eighteenth round of the MotoGP World Championship. The win came as fellow Italian Francesco Bagnaia, also on a Ducati, finished on the podium in third place, allowing Bagnaia to extend his lead in the standings over Spain’s Jorge Martín, who finished fourth.
After an earlier rain of setbacks, Monster Energy Yamaha rider Bastianini returned to the top step on a track that rewarded pace and consistency. The victory Saturday’s sprint clear on the front foot, as Bastianini dominated from start to finish, building a gap to Spaniard Alex Márquez and to Bagnaia, who pressed to defend his championship advantage. This result helped Bagnaia stretch the gap over Martín, with only two rounds remaining in the season. The points gap now sits at a comfortable margin with Bagnaia still ahead in the title race, while Marco Bezzecchi, who finished sixth in Malaysia, was mathematically ruled out of championship contention.
Bagnaia managed to stop the point loss to Martín
There are still 74 points up for grabs in the final stretch of the season. If Bagnaia finishes ahead of Martín in the sprint in Losail, he will hold the advantage as the championship heads toward the penultimate race in Qatar next week.
At the opening corner of the first lap in Malaysia, Bastianini seized the lead, exploiting a longer line into the first turn to move ahead of Bagnaia and Martín, while Márquez slipped into the chase pack behind the two title contenders. The early moves set the tone for a race that would eventually settle into a controlled rhythm, with the front trio pulling away from the rest of the field as the laps ticked by.
From mid-race onward, the order held steady as Bastianini, Márquez, and Bagnaia guarded their positions, with Martín clinging to the fourth spot and eyeing opportunities to pounce if a mistake appeared. The final stages of the race saw the trio hold their positions with precision, securing a podium sweep for Ducati as the sprint result reinforced the pecking order at the top of the standings. Martín earned the honor of best independent rider in a strong performance for a factory-backed field.
Among the other riders, Maverick Viñales finished in eleventh for Aprilia, while Marc Márquez, Augusto Fernández, Pol Espargaró, Iker Lecuona, and Álvaro Bautista filled positions from thirteenth to seventeenth. Other notable names like Aleix Espargaró, Raul Fernández, and Joan Mir encountered difficulties during the race and did not finish inside the points. With the calendar turning toward Qatar, the World Championship season moves into its decisive phase, and teams shift focus to finalizing setups for the penultimate round in the Gulf region.
In summary, Bastianini’s triumph adds another chapter to a season where Ducati has demonstrated strong performance and depth. Bagnaia maintains a slim but steady advantage in the riders’ standings, while Martín, Márquez, and Bezzecchi remain within striking distance, setting the stage for a dramatic finish as the sport returns to the Middle East in the coming weeks. This dynamic rivalry continues to captivate fans across North America, where viewers follow the high-speed battles with keen interest and anticipation for a championship outcome that could hinge on the Qatar showdown. [Reuters]