Francesco Bagnaia described his battle with Jorge Martin as “fantastic” but admitted he “needs some help” to secure a third MotoGP crown.
Bagnaia claimed his tenth Grand Prix of the season in Malaysia and crossed the line three seconds ahead of Martin.
The Italian’s win ensures the title fight heads to the season finale, though the venue has yet to be confirmed.
24 points separate the duo and Martin’s best opportunity to wrap up the title is after the Sprint race.
Bagnaia and Martin battled hard for first and second place in the opening stages, producing several hard-fought and aggressive manoeuvres.
The product on display was the first significant on-track battle between the duo all season, but Bagnaia’s superior pace allowed the Torinese rider to compile a multi-second advantage come the end of the race.
“[It] was fantastic, because we fought hard, was quite aggressive but clean because we never touched.
“And I knew that after three, four laps if I was in front and pushing I could open this gap – not just for the pace, but also for the temperature of the tyres.
“So, I was able to set my pace, opening the gap. And after that I was just hoping that Enea and Marc were closing the gap to Jorge.
“But we know right now in the championship we [Martin and myself] are making the difference and it’s giving us the potential to open the gap.
“Even if he slowed down a bit, he still finished the same seven seconds to the third.”
Francesco Bagnaia will ‘need help’ at season finale
With Barcelona rumoured to be the season finale following the deadly flooding in Valencia, the factory Ducati rider admitted he would “need help” from his fellow riders.
The previous race in Barcelona was a carbon copy of this weekend’s events, with Bagnaia crashing out in the Sprint before winning the Grand Prix.
“We still have a chance,” he said.
““I crashed there in the sprint race when I had a one-second lead, even though I was trying to avoid any mistakes.
“It will be tricky; the conditions will be tougher compared to [May] because it will be cold. And two corners there are quite tricky: Turn 2 and Turn 5. It will be important to try to be competitive but still calm.
“We really need some help from others, because in case of a win he will finish second because we are in another level.
“But I will try to help everybody during the weekend to give my slipstream, so someone will follow.
“I know that in Barcelona also Aleix Espargaro will be strong and will help Jorge all weekend. I just need someone who will go in between me and him.”
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