Espargaro, Bastianini set fastest ever Sepang MotoGP laps

Updated: Aleix Espargaro and then Enea Bastianini beat Danilo Petrucci's unofficial 2019 Sepang record early on the final day of the 2022 test.

Peter McLaren

06 Feb 2022

Aleix Espargaro , Sepang MotoGP test, 5 February 2022
© Gold and Goose Photography

After leading an Aprilia one-two on Saturday, Aleix Espargaro broke the all-time unofficial Sepang lap record at the start of Sunday's final day of testing.

But it didn't last long, with Enea Bastianini then taking last year's Ducati GP21 to a time 0.026s quicker!

Danilo Petrucci set the previous unofficial record of 1m 58.239s during pre-season testing with Ducati in 2019. Espargaro then clocked a 1m 58.371s to lead day one of MotoGP's first Malaysian laps since 2020 on Saturday.

The cooler morning temperatures again meant a fast start to Sunday, with both Pramac Ducati's Jorge Martin and Suzuki's Alex Rins dipping under Espargaro's day one best. But the Aprilia rider responded on his eighth lap with a 1m 58.157s, 0.086s quicker than Martin and under Petrucci's record.

Bastianini, fourth on day one for the new-look Gresini Ducati team, then set his 1m 58.131s stunner on his 13th lap.

The fastest Sepang laps are usually set in the first and last hour of testing, meaning there's still a chance of seeing the first 1m 57s lap later today, providing rain stays away.

With no Malaysian Grand Prix for the past two years, the official MotoGP lap record remains a 1m 58.576s set by Fabio Quartararo in 2019.

Aprilia - which took its first podium with the RS-GP at Silverstone last year courtesy of Espargaro - is the only factory that still has access to technical concessions, meaning they can modify their engine design during the season and are allowed two extra engine changes per rider.