The second day of the MotoGP Sepang Test concluded with Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) topping the timesheets, while Yamaha and Honda continued to showcase their strength. The day was not without its challenges, as both Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) and Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) suffered crashes.
Morbidelli’s best lap of 1:57.210 was enough to secure the top spot, with nine riders dipping into the 1:57 range. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) finished a close second, just 0.114 seconds behind Morbidelli. The Yamaha duo were joined in the top ten by teammates Miguel Oliveira (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP) and Jack Miller, who finished eighth and tenth, respectively.
Honda also had a strong showing, with Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) once again impressing in sixth position. Mir’s lap time was notably quicker than Johann Zarco’s (Castrol Honda LCR) Q2 time from last year’s Malaysian Grand Prix. Mir’s teammate, Luca Marini, focused on aerodynamic testing and finished 15th, just a tenth behind Marc Marquez.
Mir reflected on his progress, stating, “Today we worked with some engine options, it wasn’t an easy decision at the start because we had some work to do. In the morning, we worked a lot with the electronics to improve my feeling and in the afternoon, we were able to find the correct setup. I was happy and we have made a step with the ’25 bike, able to improve our lap time. I ran out of fuel in the last corner and lost about three tenths on my lap. We are very close in the time sheets, and I am really happy about this. There are still points to work on, especially when the temperature on track increases. We have one day here and two days in Buriram where I am sure it will also be hot to keep working on this. I am happy and ready for more.”
Marini, meanwhile, focused on aerodynamic development: “First, I want to say a huge thank you to my team for the work that they have done last night and today. Everyone is working really well to get through the work that we have. Today we worked mostly on the aerodynamics, trying the different parts to get the best feeling. I am satisfied with what we have done because at the end I think we have found the perfect compromise. We have better turning without losing anything on stopping or acceleration, it took us a long time to find but it is important to know this. Tomorrow, we work more on some other things – still a lot to do but I am happy with our work.”
Despite the crashes, both Marquez and Bagnaia remained positive about their progress. Bagnaia, who finished fifth, was content with his day’s work, while Marquez, who ended up 14th, will look to bounce back on the final day of testing.
KTM’s Pedro Acosta impressed with a seventh-place finish, moving up the order from the previous day. The Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team also introduced a new seat unit on all four of their bikes. Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech3) and teammate Enea Bastianini continued their adaptation process, finishing 16th and 17th, respectively.
Viñales shared his thoughts on the day: “We are trying to learn the bike, how it works, how it behaves so we have been doing all this background work today, which is really important for us at the moment, more than trying to get the fastest lap. This bike feels nice to ride, I have enjoyed it again today, and I know that day after day we will understand it more and more. For now, we are really focused on this, so let’s continue working in that direction tomorrow.”
Bastianini, who improved his best lap time by a second compared to the first day, stated, “The adaptation is slow, because this morning, we tried to do something different, but we did not see changes. However, in the afternoon, we made other changes, we tried new parts on the bike, and I think it worked well, this was the start of my progress let’s say. Lap after lap we were feeling more confident , and I can be happy at the end of the day. However, I am also aware that we still have a lot of work to do, because I am not really fast with the time attacks. This bike is very different to what I had last year, so I have to learn it and do many laps. Tomorrow will be important as it is our last day, but I am feeling confident that we will continue doing good work.”
Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi cracked the top ten, leading the development charge for the Noale factory in the absence of injured riders Jorge Martin and Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse MotoGP Team). Test rider Lorenzo Savadori and rookie Ai Ogura (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) also contributed to Aprilia’s efforts.
As the second day of testing concluded, the stage is set for a thrilling final day in Sepang. With riders and teams pushing to set new records and fine-tune their machines, the anticipation is high for what promises to be an exciting conclusion to the MotoGP Sepang Test.
