Second place earned Marc Márquez nine points in the 10-lap Malaysian GP Sprint at Sepang International Circuit on 31 October 2026. He said a riskier move could have brought 12 points or left him with none. KTM’s Pedro Acosta won in 20:04.098, finishing 0.578 seconds ahead of Márquez, while Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi took third.
Márquez said Ai Ogura was defending his podium position and expected the Japanese rider to attack. Ogura led much of the sprint, and the two battled before Márquez passed him late in the race. Bezzecchi then also moved ahead of Ogura, who finished fourth. Even so, Márquez’s priority was to finish ahead of Bezzecchi, one of his objectives in the championship fight. Rain threatened in the changing conditions, and Márquez weighed the three additional points for a win against the risk of crashing and scoring nothing.
The Spaniard said he had not made a strong start and built his race from there. The contest changed when pole-sitter Alex Márquez crashed from the lead on lap three. Marc Márquez eventually passed Ogura to take second, while Acosta held his pace and won for KTM. It was Acosta’s second Sprint victory. Jorge Martín was absent through injury; after the sprint, Bezzecchi was 52 points behind Márquez with 136 points still available in the season, while Márquez’s advantage over Martín stood at 19 points.
The separate Alonso Mexican GP report covered a Formula One weekend; Márquez’s points calculation in Malaysia concerned MotoGP.
Márquez called the result a useful podium, saying the risk did not justify pushing for more. Motorsport.com reported that he had the pace to challenge harder but chose to protect his result and finish ahead of Bezzecchi. He said he used his head after the start and tried to get the most from the race.
