Qualifying
Continuing on from a fine Friday, Bastianini’s brilliance in the heavy braking zones of Sectors 1, 3 and 4 put him in a competitive position after his opening stint. The 28-year-old then took a further three tenths off his personal best in his final run to place seventh and come within 0.298s of Jorge Martin’s new all-time lap record. This was the Italian’s best qualifying performance of 2026. Viñales also performed well in 19th, lapping the 4.8km layout 1.2s faster than on Friday.

Sprint
The Mobility Resort Motegi enjoyed mild temperatures of 23 degrees ahead of the twelve-lap Sprint race. With the track’s new surface offering up a lot of grip, managing the rear tyre throughout would prove crucial.

Bastianini got a great launch from seventh and a smart Turn 4 pass on Pedro Acosta saw him sit fourth on the first lap. The Italian also narrowly avoided disaster when a collision between three riders happened just behind at the same turn.

'La Bestia’ moved past Marco Bezzecchi on lap three and soon started catching Martin in second, while Diogo Moreira also closed in behind. After a tense last lap, Bastianini crossed the finish line in third, just 0.042s back of Martin. However, the pair were both demoted one place for narrowly exceeding track limits on the exit of Turn 10 on the final lap.

Returning from a four-race absence, Viñales’ aim for the weekend is to finish both races in Japan. He did just that in the Sprint, and gained places on Toprak Razgatlioglu, Brad Binder and Jack Miller in the process to come home with a point in 15th while noting a strong physical performance.

The main event is still to come for Tech3 with Warm Up kicking off Sunday’s action at 9:40 (UTC+9) before the 24-lap race, which starts at 14:00 (UTC+9).

Enea Bastianini: “At the end of the race I was a bit frustrated. Earlier this year I got a podium without celebrating on the podium in Austin - and today was similar! Apart from that, I’m quite happy about the rest of the day. It’s been a solid day from the start to the end. I’m happy about qualifying because normally I see many bikes in front of me, but today I was at the front of the third row. That was different and it was beautiful to be at the top, fighting for something good. This gave me a little extra motivation. I could see some strange movement from Jorge’s bike just ahead in the final laps but luckily my tyres were OK until the end. I hope we can continue this good form for the rest of the championship.”

Maverick Viñales: “I did the Sprint race in a good way. I felt strong all the way through so this is good. Obviously, I’m lacking some explosive movements on the bike but this will come from more riding and pushing at the gym. I’m not too worried about that. I had a clear objective, which was to change direction fast. I could do that and compared to last year, it’s a different story. So, I’m quite satisfied. I’m still getting used to the bike. It demands a very different riding style from what I naturally do. It feels like I’m still hanging on a bit. When I’ve been off it for a while, I revert to my normal riding style, which isn’t suitable. So, I need to do a lot more laps, readapt, get used to it and, step-by-step, I’m going to get stronger.”

Nicolas Goyon, Team Manager: “Obviously we have a bittersweet taste in our mouths after this Sprint, when Enea lost the podium due to touching the green on the last lap. But I think we need to keep the positives of this day – and there are many! Enea was able to build a strong Saturday. This morning, he did his best qualifying of the season, which is a good result for him, and this afternoon he rode with great pace and really deserved this podium - but the rules are the rules.

“On the other side of the garage, Maverick finished the Sprint which was the initial target. He has no specific issue with his shoulder, but it’s obvious he needs to get back up to speed and get some experience again after sitting out the last races. We’re confident he’ll come back. It’s just the beginning of his return and he did a good job today."