Twice MotoGP champion Francesco Bagnaia secured his third pole position of the MotoGP season on Saturday, after edging Alex Marquez by a fraction of a second in the Malaysian Grand Prix in Sepang.
The Ducati rider clocked a blistering lap of one minute 57.001 seconds, finishing just 0.016 seconds ahead of Marquez (Gresini Racing), while Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) took third place, 0.158 seconds off the pace.
Bagnaia of Italy, who already holds Sepang's all-time lap record of 1'56.837 set last year, delivered a composed final run to seal his third pole of the season, continuing Ducati's strong form despite world champion Marc Marquez's absence due to injury.
"Difficult to explain and, it's a rollercoaster. I'm happy, but I don't want to be too calm. I know that this afternoon will be tricky, the conditions are very hot, so it will be important to remain calm and try to understand the situation," Reuters quoted Bagnaia as saying
"This morning we did a good job; we tried different things and it helped a bit. Not just me, also the Ducatis, because yesterday we were more in trouble, so it's an improvement and we just need to continue like this."
After intermittent rain disrupted Friday's practice sessions, several top contenders, including Indonesia winner Fermin Aldeguer, Motegi winner Bagnaia, Australia winner Raul Fernandez and Marco Bezzecchi, were forced to contest Q1.
Only Aldeguer and Bagnaia progressed. The 20-year-old Spaniard went quickest before crashing at Turn 4, then again in the paddock, though no one was harmed.
In Q2, Bagnaia completed just one run, and his first flying lap was enough to secure provisional pole, beating Fabio Quartararo's early benchmark. The Monster Energy Yamaha rider eventually finished fourth.
Aprilia's Marco Bezzecchi, who failed to reach Q2 for the first time since Aragon, will start 14th, one place behind Luca Marini (Honda HRC Castrol).
