A year after his crash at the Sepang circuit, which cost him the MotoGP world title, Francesco Bagnaia exacted his revenge at the Malaysian track, triumphing decisively in the sprint race near Kuala Lumpur.
The Italian made an excellent start from pole position, which he had secured earlier in the day, and never relinquished the lead throughout the 10-lap distance. At the finish, the two-time world champion crossed the line with a 2.2-second advantage over Alex Marquez, who cemented his second-place overall finish with today's runner-up spot.
The Spanish Gresini Ducati rider spent almost the entire sprint in second place behind Bagnaia. Only at the end of the first lap was he attacked and overtaken by Pedro Acosta, but he quickly reclaimed second position, where he ultimately finished.
Third place went to the other Gresini Ducati rider, Fermín Aldeguer, who once again demonstrated his strong pace in the latter half of the race. He encountered almost no difficulty catching and passing Acosta. Shortly after the finish, however, it was announced that Aldeguer was under investigation for a tire pressure rule violation, which could potentially result in an eight-second penalty.
For now, however, he remains third ahead of Acosta, who finished in fourth. Behind the KTM rider, the points-scoring positions were rounded out by Franco Morbidelli, Fabio Quartararo, Marco Bezzecchi, Johann Zarco, and Enea Bastianini.
In the overall standings, following his victory today, Bagnaia reclaimed third place behind brothers Marc and Alex Marquez. The Italian holds a one-point lead over his compatriot Bezzecchi.
The Malaysian Grand Prix race, the 20th round of the 2025 MotoGP season, is scheduled for tomorrow at 9:00 AM Bulgarian winter time and can be followed live on Sportal.bg.