MotoGP Sepang test: Bagnaia under lap record to lay down marker on final day

Under a cloudy sky that provided cooler conditions for the start of the track action, the two-time MotoGP world champion's 1m56.682s remained the time to beat throughout the day, with several challenges coming up short over a single lap attack.

Opening day pacesetter Jorge Martin came closest to toppling Bagnaia with a 1m56.854s on the Pramac Ducati, while factory Ducati rider and yesterday's timesheet topper Enea Bastianini slipped into third with a 1m56.915s.

Given a sub-1m57s lap had never been seen before today at Sepang in MotoGP, it was remarkable to have four riders inside the time as Gresini Ducati's Alex Marquez joined the fray with a 1m56.938s.

With conditions at the optimum due to cooler temperatures and maximum grip levels after a total of six days of track action including the shakedown, it wasn't surprising to also see the long run pace cranked up too.

Bastianini appeared to have an edge over the sprint race-style runs from Martin, coming in half a second quicker, with Aprilia's Aleix Espargaro over a second further adrift, while rookie sensation Pedro Acosta produced an eye-catching run to put him fourth and quicker than Bagnaia over a nine-lap dash.

Espargaro was the standout rider for Aprilia on the 2024 RS-GP with fifth place on the overall times on a mixed day for the Italian squad, as both Maverick Vinales and Miguel Oliveira struggled to 12th and 18th respectively.

Marc Marquez, Gresini Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Marc Marquez made steady progress adapting to life at Gresini after a slow start to the test, ending the final day sixth overall and within six-tenths off Bagnaia at the top.

Brad Binder led the KTM charge with a late lap to push him up to seventh on the final day's times, ahead of VR46 Ducati's Fabio Di Giannantonio who bounced back from a crash at Turn 9, and GasGas Tech3's Acosta.

Honda's Joan Mir rounded out the top 10 as it continues to rebuild with its 2024 RC213V, just ahead of top Yamaha rider Fabio Quartararo in 11th.

Joan Mir led the Honda charge in ninth place as it continues to rebuild with its 2024 RC213V, with KTM's Brad Binder rounding out the top 10, just ahead of top Yamaha rider Fabio Quartararo in 11th.

Both Franco Morbidelli and Raul Fernandez missed today's test action due to injury.

Morbidelli has been ruled out of both official pre-season tests in Malaysia and Qatar as he recovers from a heavy fall suffered riding in Portimao last month, while Fernandez was sidelined after a crash on the opening day of the Sepang test. Michele Pirro and Lorenzo Savadori stepped in for the respective riders.

MotoGP takes a short break before the final official pre-season test in Qatar on 19-20 February.

Pos.	Rider	Team	Time/Gap	Laps
1	Pecco Bagnaia	Ducati Team	1'56"682	47
2	Jorge Martin	Pramac Racing	+0"172	47
3	Enea Bastianini	Ducati Team	+0"233	35
4	Alex Marquez	Gresini Racing	+0"256	49
5	Aleix Espargaro	Aprilia Racing	+0"409	48
6	Marc Marquez	Gresini Racing	+0"588	54
7	Brad Binder	KTM Factory	+0"625	57
8	Fabio Di Giannantonio	VR46 Team	+0"661	55
9	Pedro Acosta	Tech3	+0"683	41
10	Joan Mir	Repsol Honda	+0"692	30
11	Fabio Quartararo	Yamaha Factory	+0"843	56
12	Maverick Vinales	Aprilia Racing	+0"846	57
13	Takaaki Nakagami	LCR Honda	+1"083	32
14	Jack Miller	KTM Factory	+1"169	60
15	Alex Rins	Yamaha Factory	+1"197	52
16	John Zarco	LCR Honda	+1"260	41
17	Marco Bezzecchi	VR46 Team	+1"313	56
18	Miguel Oliveira	Trackhouse Racing	+1"318	55
19	Luca Marini	Repsol Honda	+1"344	43
20	Cal Crutchlow	Yamaha test team	+1"991	45
21	Augusto Fernández	Tech3	+2"058	60
22	Lorenzo Savadori	Trackhouse Racing	+2"132	64
23	Michele Pirro	Pramac Racing	+2"183	43