en.malanginspirasi.com – Delivering a dominant performance at the PETRONAS Grand Prix of Malaysia, championship leader Marc Marquez is ready to grab 2026 world champion in Qatar in the end of November.
He took full advantage of rival Jorge Martin’s absence to secure a commanding 4.1-second victory and extend his lead in the title chase.
The triumph marks Marquez’s 80th premier class victory, his third win at the Sepang International Circuit, and his seventh Grand Prix victory of the 2026 season.
With this win, the Ducati Lenovo Team rider opens up a 44-point cushion over injured Aprilia Racing rider Jorge Martin and a 67-point buffer over Marco Bezzecchi, setting up his first championship match point at the Lusail International Circuit in Qatar next weekend.
Joining Marquez on the Sepang podium were Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Pedro Acosta in second and polesitter Alex Marquez of BK8 Gresini Racing in third.
Marquez seized the holeshot off the line, fending off an immediate challenge from his brother Alex at Turn 4 when the younger Marquez ran wide.
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Further back, Enea Bastianini, Ai Ogura, and Acosta engaged in a heated lap-one battle for third, with Sprint winner Acosta eventually reclaiming the position by the end of the opening lap.
Setting the fastest lap of the race, Acosta quickly closed in on the lead duo.
By Lap 9, Marc Marquez had opened up a 1.1-second lead over his brother, stretching it to 1.5 seconds a lap later.
With Acosta applying constant pressure on Alex Marquez, the KTM star executed a decisive pass at Turn 9 on Lap 10 to take over second place.
Once in clean air, Acosta was unable to dent the leader’s margin.
Marc Marquez pushed his lead past two seconds, and with five laps remaining, extended his advantage to nearly three seconds before cruising across the line 4.1 seconds clear of the field.
Behind the lead battle, Ogura fought past Bezzecchi to claim fourth place, finishing just 0.8 seconds behind Alex Marquez.
Bastianini capitalized on a final-lap error by Bezzecchi at Turn 14 to snatch fifth position, dealing a further blow to Bezzecchi’s title hopes.
Luca Marini took seventh, closely followed by Fabio Di Giannantonio, while Brad Binder and Franco Morbidelli rounded out the top ten.
Heading to the Qatar Grand Prix, Marc Marquez needs to outscore Martin by 30 points and Bezzecchi by eight points across the weekend to officially lock up his eighth premier class World Championship.
