2026 Malaysian MotoGP, Sepang - Sprint Race Results
Full Sprint race results from the 2026 Malaysian MotoGP at Sepang, round 19 of 22.
Pedro Acosta wins a tense 2026 Sepang MotoGP Sprint race after Alex Marquez crashes from the lead and raindrops prompt some riders to dive into the pits.
The white flag, signifying bike swaps were allowed due to the weather, appeared early in the race, although it's not clear if rain caught out pole qualifier Alex Marquez on lap 3 of 10.
Marquez's exit put Ai Ogura into the lead, where the Trackhouse rider remained until Acosta made his victory move with three laps to go.
Title leader Marc Marquez passed Ogura soon after, despite the Japanese rider's best efforts to retaliate, with Bezzecchi also getting the better of Ogura for top Aprilia honours.
Jack Miller responded to the white flag by pulling straight into the pits, only to find his spare Pramac Yamaha wasn't ready, leaving the Australian livid.
Joan Mir, Iker Lecuona, Franco Morbidelli and Maverick Vinales later pitted for wet bikes, but the downpour needed didn't arrive until moments after the chequered flag!
Marc Marquez’s injured title rival Jorge Martin withdrew after final practice.
2026 Malaysian MotoGP, Sepang - Sprint Race Results | ||||
| Pos | Rider | Nat | Team | Time/Diff |
| 1 | Pedro Acosta | SPA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | 20m 4.098s |
| 2 | Marc Marquez | SPA | Ducati Lenovo (GP26) | +0.578s |
| 3 | Marco Bezzecchi | ITA | Aprilia Racing (RS-GP26) | +1.310s |
| 4 | Ai Ogura | JPN | Trackhouse Aprilia (RS-GP26) | +1.793s |
| 5 | Fabio Di Giannantonio | ITA | Pertamina VR46 Ducati (GP26) | +5.053s |
| 6 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP26) | +8.330s |
| 7 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +8.484s |
| 8 | Diogo Moreira | BRA | Pro Honda LCR (RC213V)* | +9.001s |
| 9 | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Red Bull KTM Tech3 (RC16) | +9.101s |
| 10 | Johann Zarco | FRA | Castrol Honda LCR (RC213V) | +9.545s |
| 11 | Fabio Quartararo | FRA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +10.076s |
| 12 | Alex Rins | SPA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +12.250s |
| 13 | Luca Marini | ITA | Honda HRC Castrol (RC213V) | +12.715s |
| 14 | Augusto Fernandez | SPA | Yamaha Factory Racing (YZR-M1) | +14.878s |
| 15 | Maverick Viñales | SPA | Red Bull KTM Tech3 (RC16) | +102.843s |
| 16 | Joan Mir | SPA | Honda HRC Castrol (RC213V) | +103.826s |
| 17 | Franco Morbidelli | ITA | Pertamina VR46 Ducati (GP25) | +105.065s |
| 18 | Iker Lecuona | SPA | BK8 Gresini Ducati (GP26) | +116.425s |
| Alex Marquez | SPA | BK8 Gresini Ducati (GP26) | DNF | |
| Jack Miller | AUS | Pramac Yamaha (YZR-M1) | DNF | |
* Rookie
Qualifying
Alex Marquez gets the better of brother Marc to claim a rare pole position for the 2026 Malaysian MotoGP at Sepang.
Pedro Acosta completes the front row for KTM with the surviving Aprilias of Ai Ogura and Marco Bezzecchi in fourth and fifth.
Jorge Martin out
Marc Marquez's injured title rival Jorge Martin, attempting to compete with a broken wrist, officially withdrew after Saturday morning's final practice.
"Jorge Martin will withdraw from the remainder of the Malaysian GP to continue his recovery from injury," read an Aprilia statement.
2026 Malaysian MotoGP, Sepang - Full Qualifying Results | ||||||
| Pos | Rider | Nat | Team | Time/Diff | Lap | Max |
| 1 | Alex Marquez | SPA | BK8 Gresini Ducati (GP26) | 1'56.493s | 5/6 | 340k |
| 2 | Marc Marquez | SPA | Ducati Lenovo (GP26) | +0.070s | 5/6 | 340k |
| 3 | Pedro Acosta | SPA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +0.084s | 5/6 | 340k |
| 4 | Ai Ogura | JPN | Trackhouse Aprilia (RS-GP26) | +0.124s | 5/6 | 339k |
| 5 | Marco Bezzecchi | ITA | Aprilia Racing (RS-GP26) | +0.175s | 5/7 | 336k |
| 6 | Fabio Di Giannantonio | ITA | Pertamina VR46 Ducati (GP26) | +0.349s | 5/7 | 335k |
| 7 | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Red Bull KTM Tech3 (RC16) | +0.477s | 5/6 | 342k |
| 8 | Johann Zarco | FRA | Castrol Honda LCR (RC213V) | +0.523s | 2/4 | 334k |
| 9 | Franco Morbidelli | ITA | Pertamina VR46 Ducati (GP25) | +0.775s | 6/7 | 336k |
| 10 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP26) | +0.794s | 2/4 | 339k |
| 11 | Joan Mir | SPA | Honda HRC Castrol (RC213V) | +0.850s | 5/7 | 341k |
| 12 | Maverick Viñales | SPA | Red Bull KTM Tech3 (RC16) | +1.244s | 6/7 | 336k |
| Qualifying 1: | ||||||
| 13 | Luca Marini | ITA | Honda HRC Castrol (RC213V) | 1'57.623s | 6/7 | 334k |
| 14 | Diogo Moreira | BRA | Pro Honda LCR (RC213V)* | 1'57.733s | 4/5 | 338k |
| 15 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | 1'58.127s | 6/6 | 338k |
| 16 | Jack Miller | AUS | Pramac Yamaha (YZR-M1) | 1'58.148s | 5/6 | 331k |
| 17 | Alex Rins | SPA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | 1'58.155s | 5/6 | 332k |
| 18 | Fabio Quartararo | FRA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | 1'58.219s | 6/7 | 334k |
| 19 | Iker Lecuona | SPA | BK8 Gresini Ducati (GP26) | 1'58.456s | 5/7 | 334k |
| 20 | Augusto Fernandez | SPA | Yamaha Factory Racing (YZR-M1) | 1'58.855s | 5/6 | 331k |
| Jorge Martin | SPA | Aprilia Racing (RS-GP26) | No Time | - | - | |
* Rookie
Official Sepang MotoGP Records:
- Best lap: Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati, 1m 56.337s (2024)
- Fastest race lap: Alex Marquez, Ducati, 1m 58.873s (2025)
Final Practice:
Enea Bastianini surprises by leading final practice for the 2026 Malaysian MotoGP at Sepang.
However, like Alex Marquez in second, the Tech3 KTM rider did his best time during a dummy qualifying run with new soft tyres at the end of the session.
Meanwhile, Marco Bezzecchi and Ai Ogura in third and fourth led an Aprilia fightback to be fastest on used tyres.
Friday pace setter and world championship leader Marc Marquez was just 13th.
Jorge Martin out?
Injured title rival Jorge Martin, who sat out most of Friday afternoon practice to rest his fractured wrist, returned for FP2 but walked out of the Aprilia pits before the end of the session.
It remains to be seen if Martin will return for Qualifying 1, which will now begin...
2026 Malaysian MotoGP, Sepang - Saturday Free Practice Results | ||||
| Pos | Rider | Nat | Team | Time/Diff |
| 1 | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Red Bull KTM Tech3 (RC16) | 1'58.516s |
| 2 | Alex Marquez | SPA | BK8 Gresini Ducati (GP26) | +0.288s |
| 3 | Marco Bezzecchi | ITA | Aprilia Racing (RS-GP26) | +0.413s |
| 4 | Ai Ogura | JPN | Trackhouse Aprilia (RS-GP26) | +0.457s |
| 5 | Pedro Acosta | SPA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +0.493s |
| 6 | Fabio Di Giannantonio | ITA | Pertamina VR46 Ducati (GP26) | +0.519s |
| 7 | Luca Marini | ITA | Honda HRC Castrol (RC213V) | +0.551s |
| 8 | Marc Marquez | SPA | Ducati Lenovo (GP26) | +0.581s |
| 9 | Franco Morbidelli | ITA | Pertamina VR46 Ducati (GP25) | +0.624s |
| 10 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP26) | +0.637s |
| 11 | Johann Zarco | FRA | Castrol Honda LCR (RC213V) | +0.685s |
| 12 | Maverick Viñales | SPA | Red Bull KTM Tech3 (RC16) | +0.755s |
| 13 | Diogo Moreira | BRA | Pro Honda LCR (RC213V)* | +0.805s |
| 14 | Joan Mir | SPA | Honda HRC Castrol (RC213V) | +1.027s |
| 15 | Iker Lecuona | SPA | BK8 Gresini Ducati (GP26) | +1.169s |
| 16 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) | +1.234s |
| 17 | Fabio Quartararo | FRA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +1.259s |
| 18 | Alex Rins | SPA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +1.414s |
| 19 | Jack Miller | AUS | Pramac Yamaha (YZR-M1) | +1.507s |
| 20 | Augusto Fernandez | SPA | Yamaha Factory Racing (YZR-M1) | +1.643s |
| 21 | Jorge Martin | SPA | Aprilia Racing (RS-GP26) | +1.843s |
* Rookie
Official Sepang MotoGP Records:
- Best lap: Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati, 1m 56.337s (2024)
- Fastest race lap: Alex Marquez, Ducati, 1m 58.873s (2025)
Marc Marquez starts Saturday at Sepang holding the world championship lead by ten points over injured rival Jorge Martin.
Martin lost the world championship lead and suffered a fracture to his wrist when he fell while battling Marquez for victory at last Saturday’s Phillip Island.
That ruled Martin out of Sunday’s grand prix, but he was saved any further loss of points when the race was cancelled.
After testing his wrist in FP1, Martin has been passed fit to race at Sepang. However, Martin then pulled out of afternoon practice after just a few laps to rest his wrist ahead of Saturday.
Raul Fernandez has withdrawn due to his recent finger fracture.
Martin's team-mate Marco Bezzecchi heads into today's Sprint 50 points from the top, and could be Aprilia's best chance against the Ducatis, which have a formidable Sepang record.
Pecco Bagnaia (Sprint) and Alex Marquez (Grand Prix) won at Sepang last year, when the top Aprilia in the grand prix was Ai Ogura in tenth.
Bezzecchi was then the lone Aprilia in an all-Ducati top six at the end of this year’s pre-season test, with Alex Marquez again fastest and Marc in fourth behind Fabio di Giannantonio.
Marc had been riding for the first time since his Mandalika shoulder injuries, while Martin - injured at Sepang in early 2025 - was absent due to winter collarbone surgery.
Injuries and replacements
Luca Marini and Joan Mir return to action for HRC this weekend, Marini missing Phillip Island due to a virus while Mir has been undergoing treatment for fatigue issues since Misano.
Toprak Razgatlioglu is missing the remainder of the season after shoulder surgery and is replaced at Pramac by Yamaha test rider Augusto Fernandez.
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Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
