Winners and Losers: MotoGP 2025 Japanese Grand Prix
- Isha Reshmi Mohan
- 2 hours ago
- 4 min read
Written by Isha Reshmi Mohan, Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
An action-packed weekend showcased significant improvement from the Honda riders, along with strong performances by Pedro Acosta and Francesco Bagnaia, among several other ‘chaotic’ moments. DIVEBOMB charts out the winners and losers from a milestone Japanese Grand Prix weekend.
Winner: Francesco Bagnaia
Finally, back to business. It was a solid race weekend from the Italian rider. Bagnaia began his domination streak in the practice sessions, took pole position in qualifying, and claimed his first sprint race win of the season, before surprisingly securing the main race victory as well. It was a showing reminiscent of the Bagnaia of old, the peerless Ducati man who won championships in 2022 and 2023.
There was a brief moment of concern in the final 10 laps, when smoke began to emerge from his bike. Uncertain of the issue, the Ducati garage, including Davide Tardozzi and Luigi Dall’Igna, was visibly panicking, worried that Bagnaia might be forced to stop for safety reasons. But Ducati held on until the end, and Bagnaia managed to make it work.
Winner: Joan Mir
After a long and undoubtedly rough path filled with ups and downs, it was great to finally see a solid weekend from Joan Mir. He qualified second and held position in the top five before climbing his way onto the podium, a sharp contrast to the string of crashes in previous races.
Mir made several well-timed attacks in his fight for a podium spot and eventually broke through Acosta’s strong defense on lap 14. This marked his first podium in four years and also his first podium for Honda.
Winner: Marc Màrquez
Of course, the one we’ve all been waiting for. Marc Màrquez finally sealed the title race with a comfortable P2 finish, marking one of the greatest comebacks in sports history. He reclaimed the championship title after 2,148 days.
There wasn’t much of a threat to his title, as the only requirement was for Àlex to gain a seven-point lead over his brother.
Although Marc seemed shaky during the sprint session due to an unexplained issue with his bike, with Àlex far from a win, it all came down to Marc simply needing to avoid a crash for the rest of the race to secure his name on the trophy once again.
Loser: Pedro Acosta
After moving up to second at the start, Acosta managed to hold off Márquez for the first ten laps. Yet, the overtake was inevitable, and the switch eventually happened.
Still, he found himself back in the top five, which was a significant improvement considering the issues KTM faced in the first half of the season.
He later lost positions to Morbidelli and was under pressure from Àlex Márquez before going off track on Lap 19, dropping well below sixth in the race.
Loser: Luca Marini And Takaaki Nakagami (Honda HRC)
Luca Marini had to retire early in the race after a promising weekend, due to bike issues as confirmed by the HRC team and further found to be issues with the clutch as confirmed by The Race’s Simon Patterson on X.
It was unfortunate, especially with his teammate Joan Mir, holding steady in the top five at the time to later convert his chances to join the podium with the Ducati riders.
Additionally, with Ai Ogura withdrawing from the race, only one home rider was left to start on the grid. Sadly, things ended in disappointment for Takaaki Nakagami as well, as he was forced to retire due to a crash in sector three with just four laps remaining in the session.
Loser: Ai Ogura
Hometown rookie Ogura had to withdraw just hours before the session started due to pain in his right hand, as announced by MotoGP, missing his home Grand Prix.
The official statement from the Trackhouse team via X read:
“Following the heavy crash that Trackhouse MotoGP Team rider, #79 Ai Ogura, suffered in the early laps of the San Marino Grand Prix, Ai has been riding in Motegi with some discomfort in his right hand. Unfortunately, this has become more acute to the point where he has been forced to withdraw from the Grand Prix of Japan. While he is hugely disappointed not to be able to race for his home fans, his well-being and safety on track must be the priority.
“The team is monitoring his condition with the MotoGP World Championship medical team and supporting in the recovery process. His participation in next week’s Grand Prix of Indonesia will be subject to a review of his progress when the team arrives in Mandalika.”
An exciting race overall at Motegi, and despite the champion being crowned, the remaining five races promise plenty of action, as discussed in the last few reports.
Be sure to catch the Indonesian Grand Prix on the 5th of October at 7:00 a.m. GMT.
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