Alex Marquez translated his early practice pace into a race win in the Tissot Sprint race at Sepang International Circuit. The Gresini Racing rider showed impeccable form, dominating the field in the closing laps. The battle behind was the story of the day as the championship race intensified with Jorge martin finishing in second place ahead of Francesco Bagnaia. The pair are now separated by just 11 points as we head into the Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday. There is no longer room for mistakes as a DNF at this point could dramatically swing the advantage in one direction for either rider.
Marquez won the race by 1.589 seconds. Once he got a taste of clean air there was no slowing him down. Jorge Martin finished ahead of Bagnaia by the same margin as the pack started to stretch out in the end stage of the race. Despite a glimpse a brilliance from the KTMs in practice Enea Bastianini was able to beat out both Brad Binder and Jack Miller to mount a fight for third with teammate Bagnaia. Binder remained in striking distance until the end of the race but couldn’t quite find the line to make a move.
Next up is the Grand Prix where everything is on the line for the championship fight.
Full Sprint Race Results
World Standings After the Sprint Race