MOTO GP

Marc Márquez proves his worth at Sepang

Álex Márquez made a strong start from pole position, but Marc Márquez overtook him on the inside to take the lead. Ai Ogura moved up into third, ahead of Enea Bastianini and Marco Bezzecchi—though Bezzecchi soon managed to get past Bastianini after a few corners.

Álex attempted to overtake Marc but ran a bit wide, failing to complete the move. Meanwhile, Bastianini tried to pass Ogura; the attempt backfired, causing him to lose two positions as both Acosta and Bezzecchi slipped past. The Italian rider struggled, eventually making contact with Johann Zarco, who was running ahead of Fabio Di Giannantonio.

Still on the opening lap, Acosta overtook Ogura to claim third place, aiming to close the gap to the Márquez brothers, while Bezzecchi also moved past the Japanese rider to stay in the hunt. Further back, Augusto Fernández crashed out.

The race settled into a somewhat monotonous phase as Marc Márquez extended his lead over his four pursuers. On the tenth lap, Acosta launched an attack on Álex. Bezzecchi also tried to make a move but ran off the track. Elsewhere, Joan Mir pulled into the pits while running inside the top ten.

Acosta showed a slightly faster pace than the group he had been with, pulling away on his own; however, he could not close the gap to Marc Márquez, who was already more than two seconds ahead. Behind them, Diogo Moreira—who had been running near the top ten—crashed.

Bezzecchi began to struggle to keep pace with Álex, prompting Ogura to attempt an overtake on the Italian with four laps remaining, though he ended up running off the track. Shortly after, Ogura tried again on the inside; the two made slight contact before the Japanese rider secured fourth place. Johann Zarco had retired from the race just moments earlier. Marc Márquez cruised to victory—his seventh of the season—taking a giant step toward his tenth world title. Pedro Acosta finished comfortably in second, while Álex Márquez held off a late challenge from Ai Ogura to secure a spot on the podium.

Elsewhere, a last-lap error by Marco Bezzecchi cost him fifth place, handing the position to Enea Bastianini. Meanwhile, Luca Marini edged out Fabio Di Giannantonio by 77 thousandths of a second to claim seventh. Brad Binder and Franco Morbidelli rounded out the top ten, with Álex Rins, Maverick Viñales, and Iker Lecuona also scoring points.

The opportunity arose from an injury to his main rival, but #93 seized it intelligently. Marc arrived in Sepang knowing he needed to maximize his points haul without turning the championship battle into a series of unnecessary risks. He left Malaysia with 34 out of a possible 37 points, leaving his competitors with a much tougher task heading into the final three rounds.

On Saturday, Pedro Acosta came out on top in the sprint race, while Márquez finished second, securing nine crucial points. Marco Bezzecchi, who finished third, also scored, but couldn't prevent the Spaniard from extending his lead in the standings. With Martín absent, this result was already a significant step forward, even before the main race.

Second place went to Pedro Acosta, the KTM rider who engaged in a spirited duel with Álex Márquez but was unable to keep pace with Marc Márquez. The podium was rounded out by Álex Márquez, who finished third on a Gresini Ducati. Ai Ogura took fourth place on a Trackhouse Aprilia, while Enea Bastianini completed the top five on a Tech3 KTM.

Marco Bezzecchi finished the race in sixth place on an Aprilia, just ahead of Luca Marini, who came in seventh on a Honda. Fabio Di Giannantonio took eighth on a VR46 Ducati, while KTM’s Brad Binder finished ninth. The top ten was completed by Franco Morbidelli, Di Giannantonio’s teammate.

Diogo Moreira, the only Brazilian on the grid, retired from Sunday’s race in Sepang. The LCR Honda rider was running in tenth position when he crashed on lap 14 of the 20-lap race. He attempted to rejoin the track but headed back to the pits shortly thereafter.

The MotoGP season continues next Sunday with the Qatar Grand Prix, held at the Lusail Circuit.

Marc Márquez vs. Aprilia...Marc Márquez’s victory at the Malaysian MotoGP Grand Prix was accompanied by a verbal clash with Massimo Rivola, the head of Aprilia. The Ducati rider insinuated that Ai Ogura had defended his position with the intent of favoring Marco Bezzecchi, to which the Italian executive responded with a reference to Álex Márquez: "Factory games should be played within one's own house... within the family." However, the events that unfolded during Sunday’s race cast doubt on the suspicions regarding team orders.

Marc Márquez and Massimo Rivola were at the center of a heated exchange during the Malaysian MotoGP Grand Prix, held this Sunday, November 1, at the Sepang circuit. The controversy began following Saturday’s sprint race, when the Spanish rider drew attention to the performance of Ai Ogura—who rides an Aprilia for the Trackhouse team—suggesting that his defensive tactics might have been linked to the battle for the world championship.

The Ducati rider’s comments did not sit well with Massimo Rivola, CEO of Aprilia Racing, who responded before the main race with a remark heavy with irony. The Italian executive questioned Márquez’s insinuations and took the opportunity to point toward the sporting relationship between the Spaniard and his brother, Álex Márquez—also a Ducati rider, though competing within the independent Gresini structure.

This exchange has reignited the debate surrounding team orders in MotoGP—a practice that allows manufacturers to attempt to favor one of their riders when a championship is at stake. Nevertheless, neither Aprilia has confirmed the existence of instructions for Ogura, nor has the Japanese rider admitted to receiving any orders to benefit Bezzecchi.

As for how the race unfolded...Marc Márquez took the lead at the very first corner, overtaking Álex Márquez, while Ai Ogura moved up to third, followed by Enea Bastianini in fourth and Pedro Acosta in fifth. Further back, Diogo Moreira held 13th place. Also on the opening lap, the Tech3 rider found himself boxed in and dropped to sixth, while Marco Bezzecchi broke into the top five.

Acosta advanced to third by passing Ogura, who was also overtaken by Bezzecchi. On the third lap, Augusto Fernández crashed at turn 14 and was forced to retire from the race. Álex Márquez found himself under pressure from the KTM rider, who was battling for second place while ensuring Marc Márquez couldn't pull too far ahead in the lead.

In the mid-pack, Johann Zarco began challenging Bastianini for sixth place on the fifth lap, while further back, Moreira overtook Brad Binder to move into 11th on lap 6. At the front, Marc Márquez gradually extended his lead, while Álex Márquez held onto second, despite the pressure from Acosta.

By the ninth lap, Marc Márquez had opened up a one-second gap over his brother and fellow Gresini rider. As Acosta struggled to complete an overtake, Bezzecchi—running in fourth—closed in on both him and Álex Márquez. Meanwhile, Joan Mir headed to the pits on his Honda and retired from the race in Sepang. On the tenth lap, Acosta finally moved into second place, while Marc Márquez extended his lead to 1.8 seconds.

Twelve laps into the race, Marc Márquez had stretched his lead over Acosta to two seconds, while Álex Márquez remained in third, pressured by both Bezzecchi and Ogura. At this stage, Diogo Moreira was running in tenth. Two laps later, the only Brazilian on the grid crashed at turn 12; he managed to rejoin the track in 18th place but retired shortly thereafter.

As Marc Márquez pulled more than three seconds clear of Acosta, the KTM rider established a two-second cushion over Álex Márquez. Zarco, meanwhile, lost ground due to technical issues, dropping to 14th. At the same time, he launched an attack on Bezzecchi, but the Italian Aprilia rider reclaimed fourth place just one corner later.

After making contact—nearly resulting in a crash for both—Ogura finally managed to get past Bezzecchi to take over fourth position. The race continued, and Márquez went on to win with a lead of more than four seconds over Acosta, who finished second. Álex Márquez rounded out the podium in third place.

This Sunday, however, #93 demonstrated why he is the primary title contender. At the start, he attacked his brother Álex at the first corner and took the lead. After fending off a counter-attack from the Gresini rider, he began to build a gap, avoiding any unnecessary duels.

Pedro Acosta managed to overtake Álex on the tenth lap, but he posed no real threat to the lead. As tire wear intensified in the Sepang heat, Marc managed his pace, extending his lead over the KTM rider to more than 3 seconds. By the time he crossed the finish line, the gap was 4.123 seconds.

The advantage gained in Malaysia shifts the outlook for the final stretch of the season. Márquez leads with 399 points, ahead of Martín with 355, while Bezzecchi sits in third with 332. Although the Italian trails the Ducati-mounted Spaniard by 67 points, it is the rider in second place who defines the most immediate math for the championship decider.

The regulations allow for a maximum of 37 points per race weekend: 12 for a sprint race victory and 25 for a Grand Prix win. After Qatar, only the rounds in Portugal and Valencia will remain, with 74 points still up for grabs. To secure the title in Lusail, Marc needs to finish the round with a lead of at least 74 points over his rivals.

In practical terms, this means extending his current gap over Martín by 30 points throughout the weekend in Qatar. If the Spaniard—who rides for Aprilia—remains sidelined, Marc will need to score at least 30 points to establish the necessary margin. One possible scenario would be finishing 5th in the Sprint race and winning the main race on Sunday. Alternatively, if he wins the Sprint, a second-place finish in the Grand Prix would also be enough to clinch the championship.

The Malaysian round demonstrated that Márquez does not rely solely on raw speed to win. Consistently composed, the Spaniard remained in complete control of the situation all weekend long.

An eighth title in the premier class would place Márquez alongside Giacomo Agostini in the history books. Following a season defined by shifting circumstances and a significant climb up the standings, the #93 rider enters the final stretch with the chance to add yet another historic achievement to his already illustrious career.

The crown is not yet secured, but Malaysia has paved the way. Marc has effectively closed the door on his rivals and begun etching his name once more onto the iconic MotoGP trophy.

Now, it is simply a matter of managing his lead and seizing the first available opportunity in Qatar—provided the race goes ahead as planned—to turn his status as the favorite into yet another chapter in the history of world motorcycle racing. Once again, we are witnessing the unfolding of a victory forged through pure resilience.

MotoGP returns to action from November 6th to 8th in Lusail for the Qatar Grand Prix, the 20th round of the 2026 season.

by Autonews