Rennie Scaysbrook | October 23, 2022
Sunday
MotoGP
There are few places like Sepang to play a match point. With the humidity hanging heavy in the air and the pressure of potential history just around the corner, lights out for Round 19 added an extra shot of adrenaline. And from there on out, the tension only rose. Two Ducatis, one with the World Championship on the line and another with an entire chess match to decide, escaped into the lead with enough breathing space from the rest to go toe-to-toe. And that they did. The winner, under intense pressure and taking a magnificent seventh victory of the season, was Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team), with Enea Bastianini (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) just coming up short – after pushing his future teammate to the flag. Again.
Completing the podium and taking the title fight to Valencia was Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™). El Diablo bounced back from a tough Saturday to show exactly why he’s the reigning Champion, riding through the pain barrier to a seriously impressive third place to keep himself in it, 23 points back but setting up a final showdown in Valencia.
Bagnaia got the start of his life and braved it out on the brakes to slot into second from the off, gaining seven places to up just behind polesitter Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing), with Bastianini already harrying the number 63 – and Quartararo looking for a way past Franco Morbidelli (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™) and Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team). He found one.
Another big shift then occurred up ahead, with Martin suddenly sliding out the lead – giving that lead to Bagnaia. The title was tantalisingly close for the Italian, and Quartararo may have been third but Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) was on a charge behind the number 20, with that plus Bastianini – glued to the back of Bagnaia – making anything possible.
At Turn 4 on Lap 11, another thunderbolt hit. Bastainini was late on the brakes, and through on Bagnaia for the lead of the race he went. Could he break away? The two remained glued together, Bagnaia losing no distance to his future teammate, as the sound of cogs whirring started to ramp up even further. Second sure seemed enough, but would it still be enough on Sunday in two weeks’ time?
Bagnaia had his hands full with Bastianini but held on for the win to put one hand firmly on the title.
The laps ticked down and just before six to go, Bagnaia hit back at the final corner to retake the lead – with Quartararo now looking ahead rather than over his shoulder. The Frenchman was catching the lead duo, with Bezzecchi dropping off the back off the Yamaha. With five to go the gap to from Bastianini to Quartararo was 1.6, and next time round Pecco also led by 0.4 as the number 63 stayed serene.
By two to go, the showdown was clear. Quartararo couldn’t gain too much more time but had a secure third in the bag if he kept it on track. And Bastianini had a serious shot at the win, glued back onto the rear wheel of Bagnaia as the final lap began.
Turn 4 came and went – the earlier passing point – and Bagnaia pounded on. The decisive moment then finally came at Turn 9 as Bastianini got a little close for comfort behind the number 63, losing some metres as he gathered it back up. And that was that, Bagnaia had enough to hold it to the line and takes a 23-point lead to the season finale after a magnificent seventh win of the season. Bastianini was just 0.2 away by the flag after making some statements of his own, with Quartararo doing a phenomenal job to end the race on the rostrum to still be in with a chance at keeping his MotoGP™ crown.
Bezzecchi couldn’t quite stay with Quartararo for third but the Rookie of the Year took another impressive finish in P4, carving out some room for himself too. Australian GP winner Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) took fifth, with Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team) charging up to sixth by the flag and getting past Marc Marquez late on. Ducati Lenovo Team were also crowned Team World Champions after a tense day at the office.
Quartararo was back on the podium in third but lost crucial ground to Bagnaia.
Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) did another Sunday classic for a solid eighth, ahead of Johann Zarco (Prima Pramac Racing) and Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing). After a tough weekend it was a tough Sunday for the number 41’s last stand in the title fight on his 300th start, and he was classified tenth after a penalty for an aggressive move on him was handed to Morbidelli. The Italian was forced to settle for P11 after 3 seconds were added to his race time, just ahead of Cal Crutchlow (WithU Yamaha RNF) after another impressive performance from the Brit. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda Team) and Raul Fernandez (Tech3 KTM Factory Racing) were the final point scorers, with Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) off to a good start before a technical problem forced him into pitlane.
2022 Malaysian MotoGP Results
| 1 |
Francesco Bagnaia |
(Duc) |
20 laps |
| 2 |
Enea Bastianini |
(Duc) |
+ 0.270 |
| 3 |
Fabio Quartararo |
(Yam) |
+ 2.773 |
| 4 |
Marco Bezzecchi |
(Duc) |
+ 5.446 |
| 5 |
Alex Rins |
(Suz) |
+ 11.923 |
| 6 |
Jack Miller |
(Duc) |
+ 13.472 |
| 7 |
Marc Marquez |
(Hon) |
+ 14.304 |
| 8 |
Brad Binder |
(KTM) |
+ 16.805 |
| 9 |
Johann Zarco |
(Duc) |
+ 18.358 |
| 10 |
Aleix Espargaro |
(Apr) |
+ 21.591 |
Moto2
In an incredibly nervy showdown at Sepang, it was Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) leaving with a third intermediate class win in some style – and Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) leaves with the Championship lead once again. After Arbolino and Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) had escaped at the front, the Japanese rider and then-points leader decided to make an attack – and slid out on the last lap.
Arbolino was left with a sizeable lead ahead of another impressive podium for Alonso Lopez (Beta Tools SpeedUp), who now leads the fight for Rookie of the Year despite only joining the grid full time at Le Mans. Jake Dixon (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) was a protagonist as he went elbow to elbow with Fernandez, the Brit eventually able to escape for another impressive podium.
`
Arbolino was there to pick up the pieces on the final lap to win in Malaysia.
After Arbolino and Ogura escaped, it was initially Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha VR46 Master Camp) holding third but in the latter stages, Lopez was able to pounce. He was followed by Dixon not long after, leaving Fernandez to take on the nervy task of trying to pass the rookie on the final lap – without knowing Ogura was about to crash out.
That was the drama as the Japanese rider went for a move at Turn 9, and suddenly the number 79 was on the floor. That left Arbolino with time to wave to the crowd on the way to the final corner, then crossing the line over 10 seconds clear for an impressive third Moto2™ win.
Lopez was able to keep a fairly secure second after that, with Dixon dispatching Fernandez, then Gonzalez and taking another podium. Fernandez did make his last lap move on the rookie ahead, and takes a valuable fourth to give him a 9.5 point lead heading into Valencia.
Gonzalez still takes his best ever result in fifth, with Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly Intact GP) in P6. Cameron Beaubier (American Racing) impressed to take seventh, with Aron Canet (Flexbox HP 40) suffering a tougher day at the office in eighth, just getting the better of Jeremy Alcoba (Liqui Moly Intact GP) and Fermin Aldeguer (Beta Tools SpeedUp).
There was drama on Lap 1 for Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) as he collided with Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) and they were out early on, both riders ok.
2022 Malaysian Moto2 Results
| 1 |
Tony Arbolino |
(Kal) |
|
| 2 |
Alonso Lopez |
(Bos) |
+ 11.411 |
| 3 |
Jake Dixon |
(Kal) |
+ 11.802 |
| 4 |
Augusto Fernandez |
(Kal) |
+ 13.206 |
| 5 |
Manuel Gonzalez |
(Kal) |
+ 14.770 |
Moto3
John McPhee (Sterilgarda Husqvarna Max) took an unbelievable win at the PETRONAS Grand Prix of Malaysia, making the perfect attack at the final corner to come out on top for the first time since San Marino 2020 – and from P22 on the grid. The Scotsman just pipped teammate Ayumu Sasaki to the line by 0.048, with Sergio Garcia (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team) completing the podium after losing out late on.
Izan Guevara (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team) suffered some late drama, having to avoid Sasaki after the Japanese rider suffered a moment, leaving the reigning Champion down in P12.
After a freight train start, bit by bit a top six of Guevara, Sasaki, Jaume Masia (Red Bull TKM Ajo), Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing), Garcia and Diogo Moreira (MT Helmets – MSI) broke away at the front, but there was some decisive drama with four to go. Sasaki had a bobble on the main straight after overtaking Guevara, and the number 28 had to bail out and take some avoiding action, heading off onto the grass and dropping back. Meanwhile, McPhee had bridged the gap and was more than in the fight for victory.
It was an unexpected but welcomed victory for John McPhee in Moto3.
That left Garcia leading Sasaki, Masia, Foggia, Moreira and McPhee, and starting the last lap the number 11 was holding firm ahead of Foggia. And then everyone overtook everyone all at once, or so it seemed, with the Leopard going for a move on the Aspar and then the rest of the lap largely two or three abreast. As the gaggle headed into the final corner, it was McPhee who pitched it to perfection, hugging the inside line and then tucking in for the final drag to the flag. Teammate Sasaki went toe-to-toe with the Scotsman but couldn’t quite make it stick, with McPhee taking an emotional first win since 2020 by just 0.048. Garcia takes third and another valuable podium, gaining points on Foggia too, as did Sasaki.
Foggia finished sixth in the shuffle, with Masia taking fourth and Moreira fifth. That concluded the front group after Guevara was forced to drop out of it earlier, and the second group was fronted by Daniel Holgado (Red Bull KTM Ajo) in seventh, just ahead of Ryusei Yamanaka (MT Helmets – MSI), Ivan Ortola (Angeluss MTA Team), Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3) and Xavier Artigas (CFMoto Racing PrüstelGP) – with Guevara next up in P12 a small gap back.
2022 Malaysian Moto3 Results
| 1 |
John McPhee |
(Hus) |
|
| 2 |
Ayumu Sasaki |
(Hus) |
+ 0.048 |
| 3 |
Sergio Garcia |
(GASGAS) |
+ 0.146 |
| 4 |
Jaume Masia |
(KTM) |
+ 0.245 |
| 5 |
Diogo Moreira |
(KTM) |
+ 0.319 |
2022 Malaysian MotoGP News—Saturday
Aprilia fading away
There was frustration etched onto the face of Aleix Espargaro throughout free practice. The Catalan had been outspoken after the Australian GP, saying his issues over previous races showed Aprilia isn’t ready to contest the title.
But he endured a torrid FP1 when he crashed because of a mechanical issue, then suffered further issues with bike two while one of the preseason promise at this venue was evident here. A crash at the end of Q2 compounded his misery.
Espargaro has watched his title challenge fade over the last three races.
“For the journalists and Aprilia I was too critical (in Australia),” he said. (But) Analyze my Free Practice 1, it is how it is, the results are there” Espargaro’s frustration stemmed from Aprilia’s package getting less competitive as the season progressed. “It’s the third year that we are slower in the second part of the championship, but it’s something that we have to discuss internally.”
“The bike we had in the test was a really competitive bike, but during the season, if you analyze also the top speed from beginning of the season until now, I can’t overtake nobody in the straight. And in the beginning the season, the Aprilia was very fast, they overtook in the straight quite easy. So…”
Ducati v Yamaha
As Pecco Bagnaia took a decisive step toward the title in Australia, the contrasts between long-time leader Fabio Quartararo’s Yamaha and the Ducati were discussed. Asked about developing next year’s M1, Cal Crutchlow indicated just how physical this year’s bike is to ride.
“My thought process for the bike moving forwards is that we need to make it easier to ride,” said the Brit. “Everyone thinks the Yamaha is a smooth bike and this-that-and-the-other but not anymore. It’s because of the power difference. The Yamaha is more aggressive. Also, aero makes it more difficult.”
Crutchlow has opined that the Yamaha is not “too easy to ride” as some have suggested.
Those comments couldn’t be more different than Luca Marini’s, who bemoaned how easy modern-day MotoGP machines are to ride, and how riders can no longer make the difference on corner exit due to ride-height devices and advanced aero.
“I would like to have a bike more difficult to ride because riders can make more difference,” he said. “Also I think in the small categories like in Supersport 300 or Moto3, the biggest problem is that the bike is too easy and now MotoGP is going in that direction. In acceleration you can do nothing, the exit of the corner is completely the same for every bike, for every rider. So you just need to brake hard, entry fast.”
Morbidelli penalty
From one side, Franco Morbidelli has enjoyed his best GP of the year, qualifying seventh and outpacing even team-mate Fabio Quartararo. But the Italian was to blame for two pieces of poor riding in FP3, first for blocking the Frenchman when on a slow lap, then doing the same late on as Bagnaia and Marc Marquez were closing in behind.
Good times in Malaysia were tempered by a double Long Lap Penalty for Morbidelli.
Morbidelli was handed a Double Long Lap Penalty in Sunday’s race for the infringement, and explained the rain flags being displayed at the end of FP3 was why he was touring. “This track is a track that you can be in one corner and it can be completely dry and you can reach the next corner it can be pouring bullets. So I was trying to pay a lot of attention on what was going on first of all, in front of me because there were some riders cruising, and second of all to the flags and to the sky.
“I didn’t keep some space for caring about who was coming behind me. And Pecco was coming really hot behind me. And yeah, I slowed him down and the penalty is fair.”
Saturday
MotoGP
Two MotoGP World Championship contenders crashed and another qualified all the way back on the fourth row as Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) shattered the All Time Lap Record in Q2 at the Sepang International Circuit. Championship Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) masterfully got himself out of Q1 only to drop his Desmosedici on its front end while on-track to go to provisional pole at the start of his second run in Q2 at the PETRONAS Grand Prix of Malaysia. He would be classified ninth but still outqualified title rivals Alex Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) and Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), the former of whom went down at Turn 8 and the latter of whom could only take 12th on the grid.
Martin crushed the lap record to take pole in Malaysia.
2022 Malaysian MotoGP Results—Saturday
| 1 |
Jorge Martin |
(Duc) |
1:57.790 |
| 2 |
Enea Bastianini |
(Duc) |
+ 0.456 |
| 3 |
Marc Marquez |
(Hon) |
+ 0.664 |
| 4 |
Marco Bezzecchi |
(Duc) |
+ 0.700 |
| 5 |
Alex Rins |
(Suz) |
+ 0.785 |
| 6 |
Luca Marini |
(Duc) |
+ 0.789 |
| 7 |
Franco Morbidelli |
(Yam) |
+ 0.864 |
| 8 |
Maverick Viñales |
(Apr) |
+ 0.976 |
| 9 |
Francesco Bagnaia |
(Duc) |
+ 1.072 |
| 10 |
Aleix Espargaro |
(Apr) |
+ 1.145 |
Moto2
Moto2™ World Championship leader Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) will start the PETRONAS Grand Prix of Malaysia from pole position ahead of his first match point Sunday, as the Japanese rider’s 2:06.405 saw him beat Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) by 0.083s. Aron Canet (Flexbox HP40) rounds out the front row of the grid in P3, with title-chasing Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) settling for P6.
Ogura will have a great shot to extend his Moto2 title lead from pole tomorrow.
2022 Malaysian Moto2 Results—Saturday
| 1 |
Ai Ogura |
(Kal) |
2:06.405 |
| 2 |
Tony Arbolino |
(Kal) |
+ 0.083 |
| 3 |
Aron Canet |
(Kal) |
+ 0.247 |
| 4 |
Jake Dixon |
(Kal) |
+ 0.296 |
| 5 |
Manuel Gonzalez |
(Kal) |
+ 0.300 |
| 9 |
Cameron Beaubier |
(Kal) |
+ 0.545 |
| 11 |
Joe Roberts |
(Kal) |
+ 0.606 |
| 25 |
Sean Dylan Kelly |
(Kal) |
+ 1.378 |
Moto3
A new lap record saw Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) claim a fourth Moto3 pole position of the season as his 2:11:411 enabled the Italian to beat World Champion Izan Guevara (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team) in Q2 at the PETRONAS Grand Prix of Malaysia. Sergio Garcia makes it two Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team machines on the front row, as the Spaniard and Foggia get set to fight it out for the silver medal in 2022.
Foggia topped Moto3 with a new lap record.
2022 Malaysian Moto3 Results—Saturday
| 1 |
Dennis Foggia |
(Hon) |
2:11.411 |
| 2 |
Izan Guevara |
(GASGAS) |
+ 0.224 |
| 3 |
Sergio Garcia |
(GASGAS) |
+ 0.263 |
| 4 |
Jaume Masia |
(KTM) |
+ 0.340 |
| 5 |
Daniel Holgado |
(KTM) |
+ 0.425 |
2022 Malaysian MotoGP News—Friday
Six Ducatis
Luca Marini responded to comments made by Aleix Espargaro at the Australian GP which branded the current situation in MotoGP, in which Ducati is dominating, “ridiculous.” His comments related to how any rider, no matter their background or ability, could fight for top six finishes on a Desmosedici machine.
Marini hit back at Espargaro’s comments about there being too many Ducatis.
But the Italian felt that undervalued the current crop of Ducati riders. “Having so many fast riders and strong riders in Ducati makes the difference. In every track, every rider has a strong point, a strong corner and when you see the data of each rider, you can improve a lot. You can improve your bike, but you can improve your style and we are pushing each other every weekend a lot.
“So I think that it’s just for this that Ducati is also stronger. For sure they’ve made an amazing job, their engineers are the best, the bike is the strongest, is the faster. But also they have, in my opinion, the best rider(s) now. So you can have a look on the data and the rider can take out two-tenths or three-tenths more in pace that make the difference for win a race or not.”
Moto2 red flag
There were mutterings of discontent from several riders over the situation in the Moto2 race at Phillip Island, which wasn’t stopped despite Jorge Navarro crashing out and suffering serious injury.
The Spaniard broke his femur when run over by Simone Corsi on the exit of turn four. But more than the break, riders were perplexed how the race continued despite Navarro sat perilously close to the racing line, between turns four and five.
Riders were left aghast as to why the Australian Moto2 race was not red-flagged following Jorge Navarro’s crash.
Asked if he was concerned by the incident, Marc Marquez was unequivocal. “Yes. And I will ask why in the Safety Commission,” he said. “Because from what we saw from the TV, it was unacceptable. This is my opinion. But maybe there was some reason. So for that reason, my opinion from the TV is unacceptable, but first of all I want to ask why they don’t stop the race.”
Fabio: re-finding the joy
From hunted to hunter, Fabio Quartararo partly pointed to his Friday speed at Sepang at his desire to make things fun once more. The Frenchman admitted he had got little joy from a recent run, which has resulted in just one podium finish from the past eight outings.
But after some conversations with those close to him, the 23-year old realized he needed to inject some fun into proceedings once more. On Friday he could be seen cheekily stealing a cameraman’s camera before a session before completing a fine rolling burnout at the end of FP2.
Quartararo’s been busy trying to turn that frown upside down of late.
“At the end, it was good,” he said of day one. “I had the chance to talk a little bit with some people, because I always wanted to make more. For example in Australia, we made a really good qualifying, but I was not enjoying, because I’m not enjoying when I’m P5. I’m enjoying when I’m in front, and actually I had to take this a little bit out of my head, because we know we have some difficulties with the bike. And just to enjoy, and at the end, this is what I was doing today, and especially this morning, with used tires, straight away we were quite fast, so I enjoyed quite a lot today.”
Friday
MotoGP
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Brad Binder takes Friday honors at the PETRONAS Grand Prix of Malaysia, fastest in FP1 by less than a tenth ahead of Australian GP winner Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar). Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) completes the top three, with some riders not putting in a time attack in the morning… and the weather closing in in the afternoon.
That leaves Championship leader Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) in P11 overall, as he was in FP1, and by just 0.003. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) is seventh, with Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) down in a difficult P20. Neither Quartararo nor Bagnaia fitted new Michelin tires for their final runs, and Aleix Espargaro suffered a crash on one bike and a technical problem on the other.
Binder’s time from FP1 was good enough to take the overall fastest time on Friday.
On a day of mixed weather, FP2 belonged to Cal Crutchlow (WithU Yamaha RND MotoGP™ Team), who set the quickest lap in a damp afternoon session at Sepang after a late change to slick Michelin tires. However, his afternoon benchmark of 2:05.710 was several seconds away from the 1:59.576 which Binder achieved earlier in the day when the circuit was completely dry.
A huge downpour had caused a lengthy red flag period in the preceding session, Moto2™ FP2, but the sun was shining by the time the premier class rolled out for their second session of the day. All 24 riders started on wet Michelin tires but there was precious little spray being kicked up by then. The session ended on slicks and with Crutchlow top as Bagnaia took second. Quartararo was fifth on wets.
The combined timesheets
It’s all from FP1, with Brad Binder heading Rins’ late charge and Marc Marquez third. Enea Bastianini (Gresini Racing MotoGP™), who’s facing his last stand in the title fight, was fourth, ahead of 2020 World Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar).
Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) slots into sixth ahead of Quartararo, with Fabio Di Giannantonio (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) in P8. Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) and teammate and Rookie of the Year Marco Bezzecchi complete the top ten and are therefore provisionally into Q2 ahead of Bagnaia.
2022 Malaysian MotoGP Results—Friday
| 1 |
Brad Binder |
(KTM) |
1:59.479 |
| 2 |
Alex Rins |
(Suz) |
+ 0.097 |
| 3 |
Marc Marquez |
(Hon) |
+ 0.144 |
| 4 |
Enea Bastianini |
(Duc) |
+ 0.396 |
| 5 |
Joan Mir |
(Suz) |
+ 0.472 |
| 6 |
Jorge Martin |
(Duc) |
+ 0.487 |
| 7 |
Fabio Quartararo |
(Yam) |
+ 1.064 |
| 8 |
F. Di Giannantonio |
(Duc) |
+ 1.073 |
| 9 |
Luca Marini |
(Duc) |
+ 1.254 |
| 10 |
Marco Bezzecchi |
(Duc) |
+ 1.288 |
Moto2
There’s no better way to bounce back from a mistake than absolute domination, and that’s what Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) had for the rest of the field on Friday. Ending the day over eight-tenths clear after storming to the top in FP1, the number 37 was back in business in a big way.
Fernandez was flying in Malaysia to take P1 in Moto2 on Friday.
His teammate, Pedro Acosta, was first on the chase in second, with Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) third. All three laps at the top were set in FP1, before the first of those from the afternoon: Manuel Gonzalez (Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team). Gonzalez ends the day fourth thanks to that effort, which was set before a downpour mid-FP2.
Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) sits fifth from his FP1 time, ahead of Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly Intact GP) thanks to his FP2 best. Albert Arenas (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team), Somkiat Chantra (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia), Jake Dixon (Inde GASGAS Aspar Team) and Fermin Aldeguer (Beta Tools SpeedUp) complete the top ten, the latter from FP2.
2022 Malaysian Moto2 Results—Friday
| 1 |
Augusto Fernandez |
(Kal) |
2:06.816 |
| 2 |
Pedro Acosta |
(Kal) |
+ 0.828 |
| 3 |
Tony Arbolino |
(Kal) |
+ 1.051 |
| 4 |
Manuel Gonzalez |
(Kal) |
+ 1.063 |
| 5 |
Ai Ogura |
(Kal) |
+ 1.122 |
| 17 |
Joe Roberts |
(Kal) |
+1.921 |
| 22 |
Sean Dylan Kelly |
(Kal) |
+ 2.867 |
| 23 |
Cameron Beaubier |
(Kal) |
+ 3.198 |
Moto3
As the fight for second heats up at Sepang, Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) and Ayumu Sasaki (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) led the way at the top of the timesheets, split by just 0.070 on Friday. Sergio Garcia (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team), who leads the battle for silver by two points, had a tougher day down in P14.
Rain hit for other classes but not Moto3™, with the lightweight runners enjoying two dry sessions. Foggia led both sessions and Sasaki’s best in FP1 is the second best overall, with both faster in the morning.
David Muñoz (BOE Motorsports) ends the day in third thanks to his FP2 best, ahead of two more from FP1: Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Riccardo Rossi (SIC58 Squadra Corse).
Foggia led the way in Moto3.
Angeluss MTA teammates Ivan Ortola and Stefano Nepa were next up from FP2, ahead of now-reigning World Champion Izan Guevara (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team). Guevara crashed in FP2, rider ok. He was one of seven crashers in the afternoon, including a second spill for Taiyo Furusato (Honda Team Asia) after the Japanese rider was the sole faller in FP1.
Tatsuki Suzuki (Leopard Racing) and Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team) complete the top ten.
The rider currently second overall, Sergio Garcia (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team), sits in P14 after Day 1 and will currently be the last rider through directly to Q2.
2022 Malaysian Moto3 Results—Friday
| 1 |
Dennis Foggia |
(Hon) |
2:12.226 |
| 2 |
Ayumu Sasaki |
(Hus) |
+ 0.070 |
| 3 |
David Muñoz |
(KTM) |
+ 0.388 |
| 4 |
Jaume Masia |
(KTM) |
+ 0.625 |
| 5 |
Riccardo Rossi |
(Hon) |
+ 0.764 |
For more MotoGP news and results, click here
