Marc Marquez claimed the fastest time in the opening practice session of the Malaysian GP at Sepang, while MotoGP championship contender Jorge Martin made his return to the track following his heavy crash and subsequent right radius fracture in Australia.
After rainfall overnight, the track dried out in time for the opening MotoGP session, which saw Marc Marquez post a 1:58.912 benchmark at the top of the classification, finishing 2.5 seconds shy of Francesco Bagnaia’s 2024 all-time lap record of 1:56.337.
Marco Bezzecchi slotted in right behind the championship leader in a briefly red-flagged session after Gresini replacement rider Iker Lecuona drove over his detached mudguard and scattered debris across the track.
Beyond the timesheets, Friday morning’s FP1 served as a critical test for the championship. All eyes were fixed on Jorge Martin as he put his fractured right arm, sustained at Phillip Island, to the test.
The Spaniard cleared the first of many hurdles this weekend by completing 12 laps, though he was visibly struggling to string several laps together. He ultimately finished down in P20, before getting medical clearance for the rest of the weekend.
Solid start for KTM
Having secured P2 here last year, Pedro Acosta underlined his affinity for the Sepang circuit by surging to third in the opening session. The Spaniard led Enea Bastianini in 4th and teammate Brad Binder in 5th.
Last year’s Grand Prix winner Alex Marquez claimed sixth, closely followed by Franco Morbidelli in seventh. Frenchman Johann Zarco took eighth, ahead of Fabio Di Giannantonio in ninth and LCR rookie teammate Diogo Moreira in tenth.
Alex Rins, Jack Miller, and Francesco Bagnaia rounded out the top 13. Making his first appearance back since missing four rounds due to health issues, Joan Mir secured P14, just ahead of Fabio Quartararo in fifteenth.
Early heartbreak for Raul Fernandez
The morning session ended in frustration for the Trackhouse Racing garage. Still hampered by a right index finger fracture sustained in Indonesia a few weeks ago, Raul Fernandez returned to the pits after just a handful of laps.
Visibly in discomfort, the Spaniard ultimately withdrew from the Malaysian GP after being declared unfit to race.
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