Acosta wins the 10-lap Sprint as three manufacturers reach the podium
Pedro Acosta won the Malaysian Grand Prix Sprint at Sepang on October 31, 2026, completing 10 laps in 20:04.098. Marc Marquez finished second, 0.578 seconds behind, with Marco Bezzecchi third at 1.310 seconds. KTM, Ducati and Aprilia each took one place on the podium.
Acosta, third in qualifying, also set the fastest lap of the Sprint with a 1:58.196 on lap two. Ai Ogura finished fourth, 1.793 seconds behind the winner and 0.483 seconds behind Bezzecchi, putting two Aprilias in the top four. Fabio Di Giannantonio was fifth, 5.053 seconds off the winning time.
Polesitter crashes out as four riders pit and rejoin
Alex Marquez could not convert his morning pole position into Sprint points. He crashed out, with the race log reporting that the rider was OK. Jack Miller had entered the pits and retired earlier. Both were listed as non-finishers, separately from the 18 classified riders, leaving Alex Marquez without a finish after setting the fastest Q2 lap.
Four other riders entered the pits and continued racing. Joan Mir, Iker Lecuona and Franco Morbidelli pitted in succession and then rejoined; Maverick Viñales pitted and returned later. All four were classified at the finish: Viñales 15th, Mir 16th, Morbidelli 17th and Lecuona 18th. Their pit visits therefore ended differently from Miller’s retirement.
Bagnaia sixth as Bastianini takes the final point
Francesco Bagnaia finished sixth, only 0.154 seconds ahead of Brad Binder in seventh. Diogo Moreira was eighth, 0.100 seconds ahead of ninth-placed Enea Bastianini. Johann Zarco completed the top ten, followed in order by Fabio Quartararo, Alex Rins, Luca Marini and Augusto Fernandez in 11th to 14th.
The top nine scored in the Sprint: Acosta earned 12 points, Marc Marquez nine, Bezzecchi seven and Ogura six, with fifth through ninth receiving five, four, three, two and one. Bastianini took the final point, while Zarco’s top-ten finish brought none. Acosta turned third in qualifying into a Sprint victory, whereas polesitter Alex Marquez ended the session with a retirement.
Complete Sprint classification
| Pos | No. | Rider | Team | Time / gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 37 | Pedro Acosta | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 20:04.098 |
| 2 | 93 | Marc Marquez | Ducati Lenovo Team | +0.578 |
| 3 | 72 | Marco Bezzecchi | Aprilia Racing | +1.310 |
| 4 | 79 | Ai Ogura | SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team | +1.793 |
| 5 | 49 | Fabio Di Giannantonio | Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team | +5.053 |
| 6 | 63 | Francesco Bagnaia | Ducati Lenovo Team | +8.330 |
| 7 | 33 | Brad Binder | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | +8.484 |
| 8 | 11 | Diogo Moreira | Pro Honda LCR | +9.001 |
| 9 | 23 | Enea Bastianini | Red Bull KTM Tech3 | +9.101 |
| 10 | 5 | Johann Zarco | Castrol Honda LCR | +9.545 |
| 11 | 20 | Fabio Quartararo | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team | +10.076 |
| 12 | 42 | Alex Rins | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team | +12.250 |
| 13 | 10 | Luca Marini | Honda HRC Castrol | +12.715 |
| 14 | 47 | Augusto Fernandez | Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP | +14.878 |
| 15 | 12 | Maverick Viñales | Red Bull KTM Tech3 | +102.843 |
| 16 | 36 | Joan Mir | Honda HRC Castrol | +103.826 |
| 17 | 21 | Franco Morbidelli | Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team | +105.065 |
| 18 | 27 | Iker Lecuona | BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP | +116.425 |
| DNF | 73 | Alex Marquez | BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP | — |
| DNF | 43 | Jack Miller | Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP | — |
