07:55
Ducati boss Davide Tardozzi says this will be a tougher race for Bagnaia from pole than Motegi was because of Alex Marquez's pace.
Five minutes to go!
Pedro Acosta, Alex Marquez, 2025 Malaysian MotoGP
2025 Malaysian MotoGP, Sepang: Sprint reaction - LIVE UPDATES
Live updates from Saturday’s Sprint race at the 2025 Malaysian MotoGP at Sepang.
MotoGP arrives at Sepang in Malaysia fresh from an Aprilia double at Phillip Island - courtesy of Marco Bezzecchi and Raul Fernandez - but with Marc Marquez, Jorge Martin and Maverick Vinales still sidelined by injury.
Marc Marquez is again being replaced by Ducati test rider Michele Pirro, Martin by Aprilia test rider Lorenzo Savadori and Vinales by KTM test rider Pol Espargaro.
Alex Marquez is comfortably on course to wrap up a historic Marquez one-two in the world championship this weekend, holding a 97-point advantage over next-best Bezzecchi. Just 74 points will remain after this weekend.
The Gresini rider is a former Sprint winner at Sepang and topped February’s official pre-season test.
Last year’s Sepang pole and grand prix winner Francesco Bagnaia has faded to fourth overall on his factory Ducati after back-to-back misery at Mandalika and Phillip Island.
Martin won last year’s Sprint and was runner-up to Bagnaia in the grand prix, after a thrilling early duel between the then title rivals.
Meanwhile, Augusto Fernandez is back this weekend to give the new Yamaha V4 its second wild-card appearance of the year, after a 14th place at Misano in mid-September.
Pedro Acosta and KTM set the pace on an unpredictable Friday, ahead of Johann Zarco and Jack Miller.
Bagnaia came from Q1 to take a surprise pole, as Ducati took a step on Saturday morning.
Saturday schedule:
10:10am (local) / 03:10am (UK) - MotoGP FP2
10:50am (local) / 03:50am (UK) - MotoGP Qualifying
3:00pm (local) / 8:00am (UK) - MotoGP Sprint
25 Oct 2025
07:58
2025 Malaysian MotoGP: Sprint tyre choice
Michelin has confirmed that all are on soft/soft, with Pirro and Savadori on the medium rear.
07:52
Front row point of view 😍 #MalaysianGP#MotoGP#PertaminaEnduroVR46RacingTeampic.twitter.com/0vWS6vuYJC
— Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team (@VR46RacingTeam) October 25, 2025
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07:50
Recovery mode 🔛
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) October 25, 2025
What can Bez do from P14 on the grid?#MalaysianGP 🇲🇾 pic.twitter.com/DtVP54FpeW
07:50
10 minutes till lights out.
07:50
Fermin Aldeguer's crew chief Fermin Aldeguer's pre-sprint thoughts: "I think that's the hardest Q1 I've ever seen, so just to get through that was an achievement. I think for the longer race we've got the pace as the race goes one. Most important is he gets experience for tomorrow."
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07:46
Our polesitter making his way to the grid 🙌@PeccoBagnaia#MalaysianGP 🇲🇾 pic.twitter.com/r5BbZ3z9HB
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) October 25, 2025
07:46
Fabio Quartararo leads the Yamaha charge from fourth on the grid. As ever, the Frenchman's one-lap pace flatters the potential of the bike over a race distance.
But, Yamaha did enjoy a solid Malaysian Grand Prix last year, so let's see.
07:42
2025 Malaysian MotoGP: Sprint tyre choice
Everyone but Savadori and Pirro have left pitlane with soft front/soft rear tyres.
Pirro and Savadori are going to the grid on the medium front. As test riders, it makes sense for their respective teams to gather some information for tomorrow's grand prix.
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07:40
Pitlane has opened for the sighting lap.
07:40
Any hopes Aprilia have of continuing its recent strong run look very remote, with Marco Bezzecchi its leading rider in 14th.
With Ducati rebounding somewhat this weekend, this has been a bad time for Aprilia to drop the ball as it tries to convince the world it is a credible title threat for next year.
07:39
Another rider with strong race pace on Friday was Honda's Joan Mir, but he'll have his work cut out for him from seventh on the grid.
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07:38
Of your front row, Alex Marquez has strong race pace on Friday despite his lowly ninth in the practice times.
If the Gresini rider wins the sprint today or is second if Bagnaia wins, he is officially the 2025 MotoGP runner-up.
07:37
Another crash earlier today has once again impacted Pedro Acosta's preparations, as he goes from Friday pacesetter to fifth on the grid for this weekend's races.
07:34
There was only one Ducati inside the top six at the end of Friday. Now, there's three of them on the front row!
Bagnaia was unlucky to miss Q2 yesterday, but there was certainly no suggestion that he had pole pace.
This is the first Ducati front row lockout since Mugello!
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07:32
2025 Malaysian MotoGP: Sprint - starting grid
Row 1: Francesco Bagnaia, Alex Marquez, Franco Morbidelli
Row 2: Fabio Quartararo, Pedro Acosta, Fermin Aldeguer
Row 3: Joan Mir, Fabio di Giannantonio, Johann Zarco
Row 4: Alex Rins, Jack Miller, Pol Espargaro
Row 5: Luca Marini, Marco Bezzecchi, Raul Fernandez
Row 6: Miguel Oliveira, Ai Ogura, Brad Binder
Row 7: Enea Bastianini, Somkiat Chantra, Lorenzo Savadori
Row 8: Michele Pirro, Augusto Fernandez
Francesco Bagnaia, Alex Marquez, Franco Morbidelli. Qualifying, 2025 Malaysian MotoGP
07:31
2025 Malaysian MotoGP: Sprint build-up
Welcome back to our live coverage of the 2025 MotoGP Malaysian Grand Prix.
The sprint is coming up next in 30 minutes.
05:34
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04:49
Bagnaia on pole in Sepang
Pole position in Malaysia for Francesco Bagnaia is his second in four races, but also his first top-10 qualifying since his previous pole in Malaysia.
Second place for Alex Marquez gives him a strong shot at victory in both the Sprint and grand prix, given his pace, and also given the poor qualifying for riders such as Luca Marini.
Full Malaysian MotoGP qualifying report here.
04:38
Malaysian MotoGP: Qualifying Results
04:33
Bagnaia on pole!
Francesco Bagnaia takes pole position, despite fighting through Qualifying 1, for the 2025 Malaysian MotoGP.
Alex Marquez and Franco Morbidelli complete an all-Ducati front row.
Fabio Quartararo was on course for pole until the very final sector, when it slipped away.
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04:31
The chequered flag is waving, but Quartararo and Acosta are on good laps...
04:29
Franco Morbidelli creates an all-Ducati front row by taking third, pushing Quartararo to 4th ahead of Acosta and Mir on what is currently row two.
04:29
Alex Marquez, looking to seal second in the world championship this weekend, surges to second place behind Bagnaia.
1min to go.
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04:28
Crash
Pedro Acosta, currently 3rd, is on the ground at Turn 1.
