MotoGP Sepang test recap
- Isha Reshmi Mohan
- 2 hours ago
- 4 min read
Written by Isha Reshmi Mohan, Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
We are less than a month away from the start of the season, with the first round of pre-season testing finally coming to an end. Here are some of the key moments from the three days at Sepang.
Day 1
It didn’t take long for the 2025 champion to get "back on track." Ducati’s supremo Marc Márquez topped the timings on his first official day back, setting a best lap time of 1:57.018
Fabio Di Giannantonio also had a solid session, finishing second and only 0.256s off Marc.
He is clearly picking up right where he left off in Valencia, where he stood on the podium to conclude the 2025 season.
Fabio Quartararo suffered an unfortunate crash but was lucky to walk away without a major injury. He even managed to head back out for a few more laps before the end of the session.
However, his camp announced that he would miss Days 2 and 3; it was later confirmed he had sustained a minor injury to his finger, according to a report from MotoGP.
“We already tested what we needed to during last week's Shakedown Test. Of course, having two more days would have been helpful for electronics and mapping, but I think we've done enough, so I prefer to sit out the remainder of the test”, Quartararo shared.
This also meant that he was set to miss the season launch event in Kuala Lumpur, which was scheduled to take place after the test sessions
Maverick Viñales rounded out the top three, trailing Marc’s benchmark by only two tenths of a second. Joining him in the paddock was his new performance coach and racing legend, Jorge Lorenzo.
Marco Bezzecchi, who had only recently signed his contract renewal with the team, finished fifth. He tested several new modifications on his bike, which included larger seat wings, a new tail unit, and a revised swingarm. As for the second bike, Lorenzo Savadori took over the seat while Jorge Martín remained out of action.
The first day also saw another crash involving rookie Diogo Moreira. While he escaped without injury, he was unable to return for more laps that afternoon. As for his teammate, Johann Zarco narrowly missed a spot in the top 10, finishing the day in 11th.
Another rookie who had many eyes on him, Toprak Razgatlioglu, definitely had a steeper learning curve to get to grips with, including the new engine and the Michelin tyres.
Day 2
The second session didn’t start well for the Yamaha bikes. According to MotoGP’s Jack Appleyard on X, there were safety concerns regarding the new V4 engines after Quartararo’s incident on Day 1, leaving it uncertain if they would even be able to proceed.
It didn’t take long for a new best lap to be established. Joan Mir clocked a 1:56, followed closely by Fabio Di Giannantonio and Franco Morbidelli during the morning session.
Meanwhile, Turn 5 claimed another victim as Álex Márquez suffered the first crash of the day.
After the lunch break, Francesco Bagnaia was the first to head out onto the track, followed by a few others. However, the afternoon session was interrupted by rain less than an hour later.
As the rain cleared late in the day, only a few riders, including Moreira, Morbidelli, and Viñales, took to the wet track for the final laps. Mir ultimately topped the timing sheets as the session closed.
Day 3
For the final day of testing in Sepang before the season launch in Kuala Lumpur, the Yamaha riders were in luck; they were allowed to return to the track after clearing up concerns regarding their engines.
“Even though we were forced to temporarily halt the test due to a technical issue that occurred on Day 1, we were able to understand the cause and could finish today‘s test thanks to the big effort of the engineers here in Malaysia as well as in Japan and Italy.
What we didn‘t have time for was fine-tuning the set-ups, which we will, of course, move to the Buriram Test,", Yamaha Team director, Massimo Merrgalli shared via Yamaha’s Press release.
It didn’t take long for a new lap record to be set. This time, it was the championship runner-up, Álex, who would go on to finish Day 3 with the fastest overall time. Additionally, further reports also revealed that Álex will decide on his 2027 move before the opening round in Thailand.
Meanwhile, later in the morning session, his brother Marc had a minor crash at Turn 1. The reigning champion got up almost immediately and brought the bike back, a positive sign considering he had just returned to the track after more than 120 days away.
There was no major movement on the timing screens until the end of the morning session, when Bagnaia, Di Giannantonio, and both Marquez brothers posted their best laps in the 1:56 range. During the latter half of the session, riders shifted their focus to Sprint simulations. Álex once again set the pace, followed closely by Bagnaia and Marc.
Although a light rain shower began to peek through as the day ended, it did not disrupt the running. Álex closed the Sepang test with the fastest overall time of the day.
Next up, the grid heads to Buriram for the final pre-season test ahead of the long-awaited season opener at the same venue. Be sure to check back in for updates on the Buriram test.
