Pedro Acosta won the 10-lap Malaysian MotoGP Sprint at Sepang on Saturday, KTM's 31 October report confirms. The Red Bull KTM rider stayed on slick tyres as rain reached parts of the circuit and beat Marc Marquez to the flag.
Acosta moves through the rain
Acosta started on the front row after narrowly missing pole. Rain touched several corners early in the Sprint, prompting white flags that allowed riders to change bikes. The leading group stayed on slicks, while Acosta joined the fight at the front and waited for a chance to pass.
Alex Marquez led early before crashing as the rain increased. Ai Ogura inherited the lead, but Acosta closed in and eventually moved ahead. Marc Marquez and Marco Bezzecchi also passed Ogura as the track conditions changed from corner to corner.
KTM says Acosta seized the lead with three laps remaining and kept his bike on slick tyres to the finish. Marc Marquez took second and Bezzecchi third. Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager Aki Ajo said “the track and conditions fitted our technical package” in KTM's account of the race.
KTM's Saturday at Sepang
Acosta's qualifying lap put him on the front row, close behind the Marquez brothers. KTM described the Sprint victory as his first since the season-opening race in Thailand. The result came after Friday practice in which the team had several riders near the front, according to its weekend report.
SportsRivo compared KTM's qualifying and Sprint classifications: Brad Binder rose from fifteenth on the grid to seventh and earned points. Enea Bastianini claimed the final Sprint point. Maverick Viñales chose a wet-bike swap, but the rain did not become heavy enough during the race to reward the change, and he finished outside the scoring places.
What the Sepang Sprint changed
- Acosta returned to the Sprint podium's top step after the Thai round, with a tyre decision that kept him in the leading group through the mixed conditions.
- Marc Marquez increased his championship lead immediately after the Sprint, MotoGP reported, while Jorge Martin remained absent from the Malaysian weekend.
- Bezzecchi secured a podium finish; Ogura missed out after leading when Alex Marquez crashed.
Source: MotoGP race report