World championship leader Jorge Martin wins the sprint race at the Malaysian Grand Prix in the MotoGP. His rival Francesco Bagnaia comes away empty-handed after a crash.
Bagnaia made a serious mistake on the third of ten laps in the MotoGP sprint race in Sepang. The defending champion, who started from pole position on his Ducati, tried to put pressure on the leading world championship leader and brand colleague Jorge Martin and overdid it. Bagnaia slid off in a left-hand bend and retired.
The Italian had to watch in the pit lane as Martin confidently took his seventh win of the season in a race over the shortened distance and was credited with twelve valuable points in the title fight. The Spaniard thus extended his lead over Bagnaia in the championship standings to 29 points.
Martin can therefore be crowned MotoGP World Champion for the first time on Sunday. If the 26-year-old from Madrid wins the main race and Bagnaia does not finish second, the title race will be decided before the final GP weekend in two weeks' time.
SDA
