Francesco Bagnaia won a thrilling Malaysia MotoGP on Sunday after a battle with championship leader Jorge Martin to take the pair’s title battle to the final weekend of the season. Spaniard Martin’s lead was cut to 24 points after he finished second behind the Italian defending champion Bagnaia, with 37 up for grabs in the final round in a fortnight’s time. Enea Bastianini was a distant third to complete the podium behind the dominant front two. “Honestly, Jorge was very aggressive,” said Ducati rider Bagnaia. “But our pace was too good, and like always in the race, on Sunday, I can attack.” Pramac Ducati’s Martin had extended his championship lead to 29 points after he won Saturday’s sprint and Bagnaia crashed his Ducati. Bagnaia admitted his sprint race form had not been good enough after taking his 10th grand prix win of 2024. “We just need to understand why on Saturday I’m struggling more to do the same,” said the 2022 and 2023 world champion. “But it’s the 10th victory of the season. We are doing an incredible job.” Martin is chasing his first world title and now knows victory in the final sprint will be enough to secure the crown.