Trackhouse rider Ai Ogura has detailed his fierce battle with Marc Marquez during the sprint race at the Malaysian Grand Prix, while firmly denying that he received any manufacturer orders from Aprilia to aid Marco Bezzecchi.
Sprint Race Battle and Early Drama
Ogura launched off the line brilliantly from fourth on the grid, overtaking both Pedro Acosta and Marquez to move into second position. As the leading riders braked for the opening corner, Ogura ran wide, allowing Marquez back into the contest. The two riders made contact at the second part of the corner and again approaching Turn 2, which forced Marquez to check up and lose a position to Acosta. Later in the race, the pair fought closely for second place, trading spots multiple times before the Ducati rider secured the position.
Ogura eventually finished fourth, missing out on the final podium spot to the factory Aprilia machine of Bezzecchi. Motorsport.com reported that Ogura described the duel as messy, noting that they arrived at the same corners side by side repeatedly. He stated that he simply tried to defend his position because he knew Marquez had better pace and wanted to pass him.
The Trackhouse competitor inherited the lead on lap three when polesitter Alex Marquez crashed at Turn 14. He maintained the front spot temporarily, but faced mounting pressure as intermittent light rain began affecting parts of the circuit.
Pace Struggles and Team Orders Denial
The second-year MotoGP competitor acknowledged that he lacked the necessary speed under damp conditions to secure a sprint victory and follow up on his maiden grand prix win at Assen. He expressed surprise that Acosta did not pass him immediately when the rain started, but explained that his pace eventually stalled without a rider ahead to act as a reference, allowing the chasing group to overtake him.
Following the race, Marquez mentioned that he anticipated a difficult fight because Bezzecchi was running closely behind in fourth place. Marquez suggested that Ogura needed to defend aggressively to protect his own podium chances against Bezzecchi. When questioned about whether Aprilia gave him instructions to support Bezzecchi’s championship aspirations, Ogura answered with a direct negative.
