07:21
Mir half a second faster than Acosta as that KTM looks like it has chewed up its tyres again.
Marc Marquez, final practice crash, 2025 Japanese MotoGP
2025 Japanese MotoGP, Motegi: Sprint + reaction as it happened
Live updates from Saturday’s qualifying and Sprint race at 2025 Japanese MotoGP at Motegi, where Marc Marquez has his first chance to win this year’s world championship.
The Ducati Lenovo rider returns to Japan, scene of past title glory with Honda, holding a 182-point lead over younger brother Alex.
While Marc Marquez can’t be crowned champion in today's Sprint, he will wrap up his first MotoGP title since 2019 if he holds an advantage of at least 185 points over Alex on Sunday afternoon.
Marc or Gresini Ducati’s Alex are now the only riders still in world championship contention, with Francesco Bagnaia slipping 275 points behind his team-mate.
The Italian – winner of last year’s Japanese Grand Prix - now has a fight on his hands to hold third place, with Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi just eight points adrift after a brilliant 1-2 (Sprint-GP) weekend in Misano.
Bezzecchi rebounded from a pair of Friday morning falls to lead day one at Motegi from KTM's 2024 pole qualifier Pedro Acosta and Marc Marquez.
Bagnaia was back on form and cautiously optimistic about the ‘solutions’ found at the Misano test, but Alex Marquez could only manage 15th and will be taking part in Qualifying 1.
Saturday’s schedule:
10:10am (local) - MotoGP FP2
10.50am (local) - MotoGP Qualifying
3pm (local) - MotoGP Sprint
27 Sep 2025
07:20
Lap 11/12
Two laps to go and it's a factory Ducati 1-2 - with Bagnaia almost three seconds clear of Marc Marquez.
07:20
Marquez gets Acosta at Turn 10 with an easy move for second.
07:19
Alex Marquez is out of the points now in 10th! That is huge for this championship race.
07:19
Lap 10/12
Bagnaia ticks off another lap and is 2.7s clear of Acosta.
Meanwhile, Marquez is flying and is hounding Acosta for second.
07:18
Replay confirms a mechanical issue for Bastianini. A bit too much of that happening lately for KTM.
07:17
Lap 9/12
Four laps to go and it's Bagnaia streaking away still from Acosta, with Marc Marquez now third and trying to break Mir.
07:16
Marquez finally gets the move on Mir done at Turn 10 with the block passes of all block passes.
07:16
Retirement - Enea Bastianini
Enea Bastianini appears to have stopped with a technical problem.
07:15
Lap 8/12
Bagnaia is 2.2s clear in the lead now at the start of lap eight. This sprint is his if he can keep it clean, and we have not said that at any point this year!
Welcome back Pecco.
07:15
Marquez wide again at Turn 11. He's struggling to get this Ducati stopped.
07:14
Behind, Quartararo is holding Marini off in the battle for sixth. Alex Marquez still in ninth.
07:13
Lap 7/12
Half distance complete. Bagnaia is almost two seconds clear of Acosta now. This is pace we have just not seen all year from him!
Mir is holding Marc Marquez at bay in third.
07:12
Lap 6/12
Bagnaia leads by 1.5s from Acosta, who is 0.8s clear of Mir.
Alex Marquez is stuck down in ninth still.
07:11
Marquez tried on Mir at Turn 10 but ran wide again.
07:11
Marquez, meanwhile, can't find a way through on Mir. The Honda rider is riding brilliantly.
07:10
Bagnaia was fast on race pace on Friday, but his run was pretty short. Clearly, though, that pace was genuine. This is fantastic to see.
07:10
Lap 5/12
Onto lap five and Bagnaia's lead is over a second!
07:09
Martin crash replay
LIGHTS OUT IN THE SPRINT 🚥
— TNT Sports Bikes (@bikesontnt) September 27, 2025
It's perfect from Pecco, but BOTH factory Aprilias are out of the race immediately! 😩#MotoGP | #JapaneseGP | Live on TNT Sports and Discovery+ pic.twitter.com/YWlIxoWpmG
07:08
Lap 4/12
Onto lap four, Bagnaia sets another fastest lap to extend his lead to 0.8s.
07:07
Lap 3/12
Marquez tried a move on Mir at Turn 5 but ran wide. Bagnaia still leads by 0,6s from Acosta.
07:07
A replay of the Aprilia clash shows Martin lost it big time into Turn 1 and wiped out Bezzecchi, with two of the Yamahas caught up too.
07:06
Further down, Morbidelli is behind Marquez in fifth ahead of Quartararo, Marini, Fernandez and Alex Marquez.
07:06
Track limits warning has been issued to Acosta already with 11 laps to go.
07:05
Acosta goes for second at Turn 5 on Mir and gets the job done. He needs to get after Bagnaia now if he has any hope of winning this sprint.
