This week, MotoGP heads to Malaysia for the final flyaway race of the 2025 season. The Petronas Grand Prix of Malaysia completes the Asian leg before they head back to Europe. The past two races have provided us with maiden winners, can Malaysia do the same? Let’s take a look at last year and what we can expect in this year’s round.
Alonso Kept His Winning Streak in Moto3
He won the championship in Japan but that didn’t stop David Alonso last year. In Malaysia, he took his 13th win and made it six in a row. Lining up 3rd for the race, Alonso initially lost positions as he avoided Daniel Holgado crashing. Whilst some positions were gained by retirements, it wasn’t long before he was at the front. By lap 9 he was in second, hunting down Taiyo Furusato. On lap 12, he had the opportunity and took it – also taking the win.
Furusato came 2nd – his 3rd podium in Moto3. Making a brave last lap move José Antonio Rueda took 3rd place. In contrast to Alonso’s high, many riders had a tough race. One of those riders was pole sitter Adrián Fernández. He was using the new Honda engine and on lap 3, smoke could be seen from the bike. Unfortunately, he had to retire. Three others also suffered the same fate – teammate Ángel Piqueras, Scott Ogden, and Tatsuki Suzuki.
Joel Esteban, Riccardo Rossi, Daniel Holgado, and Nicola Carraro all crashed and also didn’t finish the race. With all the chaos, only 19 riders finished the race, making it an eventful round for Moto3.
Vietti on Top In Moto2
Substitute rider for the OnlyFans American Racing Team, Jorge Navarro, put himself on pole for the Moto2 race. Despite this, it was Celestino Vietti who was victorious come Sunday. The Italian took the lead on the first lap and resisted pressure from behind to take the win.
Marcos Ramírez was able to briefly take the lead on lap 6 but Vietti immediately took it back. This put Ramírez under pressure himself and later conceded 2nd place to his temporary teammate Navarro. Whilst he started well, Ramírez would continue to fall, finishing 6th overall, whereas Izan Guevara would take the final podium position.
Recently crowned champion Ai Ogura had a tricky race. Starting 7th he was hoping to follow his crowning with a win. But instead, his engine cut out on lap 10 as he was forced to retire. Alberto Surra was substituting for Fermín Aldeguer but his race didn’t last long as he was caught in a lap 1 tangle with Zonta van den Goorbergh, Senna Agius, and Harrison Voight. Whilst Goorbergh was able to continue for a few laps, this ended the race for the other three.
Martín Inched Closer to the MotoGP Title
Only 17 points separated title rivals Francesco Bagnaia and Jorge Martín as they arrived in Malaysia. With two rounds to go, it was coming down to the wire. Bagnaia bagged pole and looked set to reduce the gap, but come the end of the weekend, Martín had increased it.
In the sprint, Martín took the lead immediately. Bagnaia couldn’t even fight to take it back as he crashed on lap 3. Marc Márquez came second with Bagnaia’s teammate, Enea Bastianini, taking third. Rain started to fall and it was declared a flag-to-flag race, however it quickly cleared. However, due to this, not many overtakes happened as riders were playing it safe.
With his sprint win, Martín was 29 points ahead of Bagnaia. If he could stretch that to 38 come the chequered flag, he would be crowned champion. However, it didn’t go his way and the title fight would go down to the final race. Following the start, the race was red-flagged when Brad Binder and Álex Márquez collided. The contact saw Binder veer into Fabio Quartararo, who then went into Jack Miller. Á. Márquez and Quartararo were able to restart following the red-flag, but it put an end to Binder and Miller’s race.
On the restart, Bagnaia and Martín battled for the lead but it was Bagnaia who won out. Back at the front, Bagnaia was untouchable, winning by 3.141 seconds, and decreasing the points to 24. Early on in the race, M. Márquez was looking for another podium finish but he crashed on lap 7, handing p3 to Bastianini. M. Márquez was able to continue however he only recovered to P12.
Overall, it was an unforgettable weekend in Malaysia. With rain, red-flags, and dominant wins, there was no time to look away during the races. In Moto3, David Alonso was showing why he was champion whereas Moto2 provided viewers with unexpected results. And it was set to be another close battle for the title in MotoGP.
Malaysia in 2025
Coming to Malaysia in 2025 we have a new winner amongst the riders. Last weekend in Australia, Raúl Fernández took his maiden win in a dominant way. He became the 8th winner of the year and brought the Trackhouse MotoGP Team their first victory.
Whilst Marc Márquez has the title sealed, he’ll still be missing from the grid as he continues to recover. But the fight isn’t over behind him. Currently, Álex Márquez sits behind his brother but both Marco Bezzecchi and Francesco Bagnaia could mathematically still take P2 from him. Acosta sits in 5th and he’ll be itching to get his maiden win – can he do it?
In Moto2 there’s still a close fight for the championship. Currently, Manuel González is at the top but Diogo Moreira (who’s headed to MotoGP next year), is only two points behind him. With 75 points still up for grabs, any of the top five could still win the title. Sitting 81 points behind, Daniel Holgado is now officially out of contention. José Antonio Rueda has the Moto3 crown and he’ll be aiming for a hat trick of wins. Five riders could still take the runner’s-up spot though, with only 58 points separating p2 to p6.
Petronas Sepang International Circuit
The race will be held at the Petronas Sepang International Circuit in Sepang, Malaysia. The Malaysian Grand Prix has been a staple on the MotoGP calendar since 1991, and in 1999 it switched to this circuit following its opening. The circuit itself was also home of the Formula 1 Malaysian Grand Prix until 2017.
With four slow corners, 10 medium to high-speed corners, and two long straights Sepang is one of the longest laps on the calendar. The track is wide, offering plenty of overtaking opportunities but due to the heat and humidity, it’s a gruelling track for the riders. Considering the unpredictable conditions, the weather can easily change, which adds a level of difficulty across the weekend.
Valentino Rossi has won here the most – seven overall with five in MotoGP. For constructors, Ducati have the most MotoGP wins at the circuit (8), whereas Honda is the most successful across all series with a total of 33 wins. Of the current grid, 11 riders have been victorious with Francesco Bagnaia holding two wins. 2023 sprint winner and current runner-up Álex Márquez also holds the lap record – a 1:58.979.
Schedule
The schedule for the weekend is as follows. Please note that all times are in CEST.
Will Malaysia see a third maiden winner or can Francesco Bagnaia return to form and repeat last year’s success here? Keep an eye on the Aprilia and KTM bikes as they seem to have found pace over the Asian leg. With 3 rounds remaining, riders will be giving it their all so tune in.