News On Japan

Bagnaia Triumphs in Japan as Márquez Clinches Seventh MotoGP Title

Motegi, Sep 28, 2025 (News On Japan) - Francesco Bagnaia delivered a flawless weekend at the Motul Grand Prix of Japan, taking pole position, winning Saturday’s Sprint, and dominating the main race at Motegi to secure maximum points.

The Ducati rider, who set a new lap record in qualifying, controlled Sunday’s race from the front, leaving his rivals little chance to challenge.

The bigger story, however, was Marc Márquez’s second-place finish, which was enough to seal his seventh premier-class world championship and ninth overall. Márquez, who joined Ducati this season, secured the title with five rounds remaining, marking a historic achievement in his career and reaffirming his comeback at the highest level of the sport.

Honda fans also had reason to celebrate as Joan Mir crossed the line in third, giving the Japanese manufacturer a home podium at Motegi. Rising star Pedro Acosta showed promise in the Sprint with a third-place finish but slipped back in Sunday’s race after struggling with grip. Defending champion Jorge Martín endured a difficult weekend, crashing and fracturing his collarbone in Saturday’s action, which ruled him out of the Grand Prix and further underlined the shift in momentum toward Márquez and Bagnaia.

The Motegi round reinforced Ducati’s dominance, with Bagnaia back in top form and Márquez securing the title early, leaving the remaining races to play out as a battle for pride, podiums, and future momentum.

Source: SPOTV ASIA

News On Japan
POPULAR NEWS

A fire broke out at Arima Inari Shrine near the Arima Onsen hot spring resort area in Kobe on the night of June 9th, destroying multiple buildings and leaving an elderly Shinto priest and his wife with minor injuries.

Japan, which records the shortest average sleep duration among OECD countries, is launching new efforts to tackle widespread sleep deprivation, including the opening of specialized sleep disorder departments and programs aimed at improving children's sleep habits through sports and physical activity.

Japan's national soccer team arrived in Nashville, Tennessee, on June 8th from Monterrey, Mexico, where it had been conducting a pre-World Cup training camp, and held its first practice session at its base camp for the FIFA World Cup in North America.

A prolonged eruption at Sakurajima on June 7th blanketed parts of Kagoshima City in volcanic ash, turning roads gray and prompting long lines of vehicles seeking car washes after a plume of smoke rose 1,300 meters above the crater.

A powerful earthquake struck off Mindanao Island in the southern Philippines at 8:38 a.m. (Japan time) on June 8th, generating tsunami waves across parts of the Pacific, causing building collapses and casualties near the epicenter, and prompting the Japan Meteorological Agency to issue tsunami advisories along a wide stretch of Japan's Pacific coastline before lifting all of them at 4:50 p.m.

MEDIA CHANNELS
         

MORE Sports NEWS

Japan's national football team continued preparations for the FIFA World Cup in North America on June 6th, holding a partially closed training session near Monterrey, Mexico, on the fourth day of its pre-tournament camp.

Expectations for Japan are unusually high heading into the 2026 World Cup, with the team now aiming not merely to reach the knockout stage but to finally break through the Round of 16 and advance to the quarterfinals for the first time.

The Japan national football team has begun its pre-World Cup training camp in Monterrey, Mexico, as players prepare for the tournament under challenging conditions, including temperatures exceeding 33 degrees Celsius.

The annual Gatalympics festival was held on the mudflats of the Ariake Sea in Kashima City, Saga Prefecture, drawing about 1,400 participants from 13 countries and regions who battled through a series of unique mud-based events while becoming thoroughly covered in mud.

A pair of sisters from Aichi Prefecture are closing in on a dream they have pursued for nearly a decade, with Ren Matsumoto and Non Matsumoto aiming to secure a place at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games after rising to the top of Japan's beach volleyball rankings through years of family sacrifice and determination.

Volleyball player Shunichiro Sato, a member of Japan’s men’s national team, was arrested by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department on suspicion of possessing marijuana after allegedly leaving a bag containing the drug at a pachinko parlor in Tokyo.

Yomiuri Giants manager Shinnosuke Abe resigned on May 26th after being arrested on suspicion of assaulting his eldest daughter at the family’s home in Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward, a scandal that has sent shockwaves through Japanese professional baseball just before the start of interleague play.

Japan's national soccer team began a domestic training camp in Chiba on May 25th ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, with 13 players including 39-year-old Yuto Nagatomo of FC Tokyo and Daichi Kamada of Eintracht Frankfurt taking part in the opening session.