Bagnaia wins Malaysia MotoGP to force final round title battle with Martin

The Italian won the penultimate MotoGP in Sepang to force a final round showdown for the championship with Jorge Martin on November 17.

Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia kept his MotoGP title defence alive with a victory at the Malaysian Grand Prix in Sepang, cutting Jorge Martin’s lead in the driver’s standings down to 24 points before the season’s final race.

Pramac Racing’s Martin’s second-placed finish in Sepang moved him up to 485 points in the overall standings, while Bagnaia is second on 461. Bagnaia’s teammate Enea Bastianini finished third in Sunday’s race, over seven seconds behind Martin.

After a chaotic start, the race at the Sepang International Circuit was restarted for 19 laps under dark clouds and in sweltering conditions.

Polesitter Bagnaia had a clean start off the line and kept the lead heading into the first turn.

In a thrilling first three laps, Bagnaia and Martin threw caution to the wind and went toe-to-toe on every turn as the lead continuously swapped hands between the two title rivals.