MotoGP 2025 Malaysian Grand Prix: Preview
- Finn Glover
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
Written by Finn Glover, Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
A track which hosted arguably MotoGP’s battle of the century last year returns once more, as we head into the final three races of what has been a record-breaking season.
Amidst the heat and humidity lies one of MotoGP’s toughest challenges. No matter rain or shine, the Malaysian Grand Prix never fails to produce an exciting race.
The Malaysian Grand Prix: Sepang International Circuit
You know a track is of a certain quality when millions of Formula One fanatics beg for its return season upon season. MotoGP doesn’t have that worry, though, and it has the pleasure of a field of 22 roaring around the Sepang International Circuit.
It is one of MotoGP’s longest, at 3.444 mi (5.53 km). It is composed of 15 brilliant corners and two incredibly long straights, providing the perfect concoction for action. With the widest track width of the season, bikes here can opt to go five or six wide if they dare.
The corners invite overtaking; being long, sweeping and multi-lined, alongside the much narrower and awkwardly cambered corners of Turns 1, 9 and 15, which have provided heaps of excitement since the track's debut in 1999.
Not only is the circuit a challenge for the riders, but the heat and humidity create a claustrophobic atmosphere within the helmet that riders somehow manage to deal with. It is the perfect combination, and it provides the utmost pleasure for riders, teams, and fans alike.
Past results
Last year, we witnessed one of MotoGP’s greatest battles between tussling title contenders Pecco Bagnaia and Jorge Martín. They exchanged the lead a total of 17 times in just four laps; a feat never seen before in MotoGP. Ultimately, Bagnaia came out on top, just about keeping the title hopes alive.
Ducati have won every race here since the return from the pandemic in 2022. Prior to that, it was a track with no real ‘form’, with the end-of-season lethargy kicking in and the track handing itself to surprises galore. Bagnaia, Enea Bastianini, Maverick Viñales, and of course, Marc Márquez, have all won here in the premier class.
Yet, two of them are injured this weekend, and both Bastianini and Bagnaia could not fathom a way into the top eight in Phillip Island, with Ducati’s boy Bagnaia being down in 19th before his crash!
There have been some incredibly iconic moments at this track; from Valentino Rossi and Marc Márquez’s ‘incident’ in 2015, and as prior mentioned, last year’s brawl. Will this year throw up another story to entice us all once more?
Key notices
The absentee list still remains; all of Marc Márquez, Maverick Viñales, and Jorge Martín are out injured, and Michele Pirro, Pol Espargaró, and Lorenzo Savadori are all coming in to replace them.
Wildcarding once more is Yamaha’s Augusto Fernández. He will ride the much-anticipated V4 bike, which debuted at Misano, to decent success. At one of Yamaha’s most important races in terms of fanbase and sponsorship, can he deliver a surprise result amidst a spooky season for most of MotoGP’s favourites?
Can Raúl Fernández continue his fine Phillip Island form? The Spaniard, questioned by many, claimed his debut win on board a satellite Aprilia last time out, and, at a track he has only scored a singular point in his MotoGP career, will be looking for a brilliant result to solidify his newly established place in the top ten.
For the first time since 2022, we will enter the final few rounds with just two Ducati bikes in the top three in the championship, thanks to Marco Bezzecchi’s recent form which has allowed him to surge past the decrepit Ducati of Bagnaia which just seems to be longing for the season’s end.
Three rounds to go, and the excitement will not cease despite the lack of a championship battle for the first time since 2021. The Malaysian Grand Prix never fails to deliver, and, in clouds of uncertainty (and a lot of rain), anything can happen.
Will there be three first-time winners in three races? Can MotoGP’s racing action deliver a sixth different winner in six races? Tune in to find out! The race kicks off at 7 am GMT.
