MotoGP: Pecco returns to form with a Sprint victory in Malaysia as Gresini celebrate the #73’s achievement and Aldeguer’s Rookie of the Year win.
There was simply no stopping Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) on Saturday at the PETRONAS Grand Prix of Malaysia. Pole position to Tissot Sprint victory – back with a bang. The double MotoGP World Champion made it look easy to beat Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) by 2.2s, with that result officially handing the #73 second in the championship to make it a Marquez brother 1-2. What an achievement for the family. And there was more to celebrate in the Gresini box because a P3 in the Tissot Sprint meant Fermin Aldeguer clinched the 2025 Rookie of the Year crown, despite a post-Sprint tyre pressure penalty costing the Spaniard his bronze medal.
Bagnaia grabs the holeshot
It was a great start from pole by Pecco and as usual, Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) got off the line like a missile to grab an early P3. Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) didn’t get away well, but the Italian battled his way back to P4 by the end of the opening lap, as he and former teammate Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) went elbow to elbow.
Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) and Aldeguer treated us to a barnstormer on the opening lap too before the 2020 World Champion earned P4 at the end of Lap 1 and got into a rapid rhythm.
Mir crashes out of rostrum fight
At the start of Lap 3, Pecco was a second clear of Alex Marquez and Acosta, with Mir just over half a second away from the rostrum. At this stage of the Sprint, Pecco was half a second faster than anyone else on circuit, and his lead was soon up to 1.9s over the trio of Spaniards behind him.
That soon became two though. Mir was down at Turn 9 as he slipped out of the podium battle, and that was the #36’s Sprint over. Now, it was Aldeguer who had his sights firmly set on Acosta’s rear tyre for a bronze medal, and the rookie was reeling in his compatriot very quickly.
Aldeguer hunts and passes Acosta for P3
Aldeguer was over half a second faster on Laps 6 and 7, meaning with three to go, the #54 was in striking distance. And sure enough, Aldeguer pounced. Turn 9 was the corner, and it was a clean, up the inside move to see the Gresini rider move into P3.
Honda HRC Castrol’s promising Saturday ended in double disappointment as Luca Marini suffered his first crash of the season after a move up the inside of Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Tech3) didn’t work at Turn 14, which also cost the #44 his place in the top nine.
Aldeguer didn’t have enough time left to catch and challenge teammate Marquez for P2, and no one could lay a glove on Pecco. The #63 delivered a faultless Saturday in Sepang to win the Tissot Sprint from pole, with the silver and bronze medals going to the Gresini garage as Marquez finally clinched P2 overall to create history – a Marquez 1-2 in 2025. And on the other side of the box, Aldeguer’s P3 saw him crowned the star rookie of the campaign – and even with a late tyre pressure penalty, that doesn’t change things.
Your Saturday points scorers
Acosta crossed the line in P4 but inherits a bronze medal after Aldeguer’s penalty, with the #37 finishing 1.3s ahead of Morbidelli, as Quartararo completed the top five. Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing) was the lead RS-GP rider in P6, the Italian now sits level on points with Pecco again in that championship fight, with Aldeguer’s eight-second hit dropping him to P7. Johann Zarco (CASTROL Honda LCR) and Enea Bastianini (Red Bull KTM Tech3) acted as the final points scorers in P8 and P9 respectively.
Coming up: Grand Prix Sunday in Malaysia
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