Bagnaia secures pole and wins Sepang sprint after chaotic practice

Francesco Bagnaia bounced back from a difficult Friday to take pole and dominate the Sprint at the Malaysian Grand Prix on Saturday at the Petronas Sepang International Circuit, converting a late recovery in qualifying into a lights to flag win that breathed new life into his inconsistent 2025 season. Bagnaia went from Q1 to pole after a chaotic practice session disrupted by intermittent rain, then led every lap of the 10‑lap sprint to finish 2.259 seconds clear of Alex Marquez.

The Italian missed an automatic place in Q2 on Friday after rain late in the session and said he left the pitlane too late to get the laps needed when conditions returned. Short of soft tyres for qualifying, Bagnaia produced a single flying lap of 1m57.001s in Q2 to secure his third pole of the year, edging Marquez by 0.016 seconds. Franco Morbidelli completed an all Ducati front row in third.

Bagnaia controlled the sprint from the start, holding off a brief early challenge from Marquez and distancing the field over the middle laps. Rookie Fermin Aldeguer finished third on the road after moving past Pedro Acosta late in the race, but his result is the subject of a tyre pressure investigation that could...