The 2026 MotoGP pre-season test at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia came to an exciting close on Thursday, 5 February. The three-day test gave teams their first real chance to see how fast their bikes are, try new parts and practise race-like runs before the new season begins.

Álex Márquez was the fastest rider on the final day and finished at the top of the overall times. He rode his Gresini Ducati GP26 to a best lap time of 1:56.402s, which was quicker than anyone else all week. That time was very close to the all-time Sepang lap record of 1:56.337s set in qualifying back in 2024.

Márquez also did strong race-type runs over long stints of about ten laps, showing not just speed in a single fast lap but good pace over many laps, which teams use to judge how the bike will perform in a race.

Marco Bezzecchi on the Aprilia was second fastest on the final day, only a few tenths behind Márquez. He managed to jump up into that place with a late lap in the session. Fabio Di Giannantonio, riding for VR46 Racing, was the third quickest.

Marc Márquez, the reigning world champion and Álex’s older brother, had a small crash at Turn 1 earlier in the day but was unharmed. He still finished high up in the times, showing good speed even though he was adapting to new aero parts and settings. Francesco Bagnaia also finished near the front and showed a better feeling with his Ducati than earlier in the test.

There were some falls during the test, such as Franco Morbidelli crashing at Turn 14 while he was learning the new GP25 machine, but most of the riders were able to continue testing without issues.

One of the big talking points of the test was the return of Yamaha after an engine problem that forced them off track on Wednesday. The new Yamaha V4 engine needed checks and fixes to be safe, so the team missed a day of running. Once they were back on track, riders like Álex Rins and Toprak Razgatlıoğlu got laps in, though they were not near the fastest times.

Other manufacturers also worked on improvements. Honda had a tougher final day because the track grip was lower after rain, but the team still made progress with their RC213V machine and found gains with the engine that now needs to be homologated for the season.

KTM riders such as Pedro Acosta and Maverick Viñales showed good speed, with Acosta leading the KTM group on the final day. Raúl Fernández for Trackhouse also rode well, finishing in the top ten and looking much stronger than in past tests.

The Sepang test is only the first of the pre-season, and riders will head next to Buriram in Thailand for more running before the 2026 season gets under way. Teams will use all the data from Sepang to prepare for the first race and make sure their bikes are as competitive as possible.