Francesco Pecco Bagnaia powerfully returned to form by smashing the Motegi lap record to clinch MotoGP Japan pole position ahead of Honda’s Joan Mir who marked his best-ever qualifying result.
On a mostly sunny Saturday under the clear skies of the Motegi Mobility Resort, the two-time MotoGP champion maximized his resurgence this season by delivering a remarkable performance, recording a blistering lap time of 1:42.911s.
This marked his second pole position of the season, achieved by a razor-thin margin of just 0.092 seconds over Mir, who surprised many by securing second place.
Marc Marquez was able to secure third on the grid, adding fuel to his pursuit of the 2025 MotoGP World Championship, moving ever closer to his first title since 2019.
The qualifying unfolded in two key stages, starting with Q1 where the riders fought hard to secure a spot in the final top 12 shootout of Q2.
Alex Marquez, despite a tough start to the weekend, managed to progress from Q1 to Q2 narrowly, taking eighth place in the final qualifying classification. Franco Morbidelli also made it through Q1, having led the initial phase.
Jack Miller on the Pramac Yamaha came close but ultimately fell short in 14th place, while defending MotoGP champion Jorge Martin continued struggling in 17th.
Notably, home heroes Ai Ogura and Takaaki Nakagami showed impressive pace but could only manage 13th and 20th places overall, reflecting the intense competition they faced on their home turf.
In Q2, the session pace was set early by Marc who clocked an initial benchmark lap of 1:43.413 on his Ducati Lenovo GP25 and seemed poised to dominate.
However, his struggles with bike setup forced him to back off and follow his brother Alex around the circuit for a period, marking an interesting tactical approach.
Meanwhile, Pecco Bagnaia demonstrated exceptional pace, continuously improving his lap times as track conditions evolved. He strategically used both Marquez brothers as markers on his flying laps, ultimately overtaking Marc to lead the session by an impressive margin.
The Ducati rider’s final flying lap was a masterclass in precision and speed, breaking the elusive 1:43 barrier with his record-setting 1:42.911, demonstrating both his skill and the raw power of the Ducati GP25.
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Joan Mir’s performance was equally commendable. Riding the Honda RC213V, Mir matched and even flirted with Bagnaia’s pace, missing out on MotoGP Japan pole position by a mere 0.092 seconds.
This represented his best qualifying result with Honda, a promising sign for the marque at their home circuit.
Other notable performances came from Pedro Acosta of Red Bull KTM, who overcame early technical challenges to qualify an impressive fourth. Despite suspected ride-height device issues limiting his qualifying runs to just one, Acosta exhibited remarkable pace and determination.
Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo took fifth place, ahead of VR46 Ducati’s Franco Morbidelli who rounded out the second row.
Luca Marini on the factory Honda claimed seventh place, followed by Alex Marquez in eighth, who demonstrated resilience after advancing from Q1.
Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi, though challenged by some setbacks during free practice, managed a respectable ninth place, while stablemate Raul Fernandez took the tenth spot, showing Aprilia’s solid presence in the top ten.
Further down the grid, the battle for points and strong race positions extended to riders like Johann Zarco, who placed 11th for Castrol Honda LCR, and Fabio Di Giannantonio in 12th for Pertamina VR46 Ducati.
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