MotoGP: Acosta Tops Final In-Season Test at Misano for KTM; Yamaha Riders Try New V4 Bike

Pedro Acosta topped the timesheets at the final in-season MotoGP test of 2025 at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli. The Red Bull KTM Factory Team rider clocked a blistering 1m30.374s during the afternoon session, a lap that stayed unchallenged for the rest of the day. While just shy of the official pole time from the recent San Marino Grand Prix, it was notably quicker than his own qualifying performance at the race weekend, showcasing his continued progress. The morning session provided a flurry of rapid changes at the top, with Francesco Bagnaia, Marc Marquez and Marco Bezzecchi all taking turns to lead the timing charts. It was Gresini Racing’s Alex Marquez who first looked set to hold the advantage with a 1m30.714s, but Acosta’s late charge redefined the benchmark. Bezzecchi impressed as the first rider to dip below the 1m31s barrier earlier in the day, eventually settling into third overall behind Acosta and Alex Marquez.

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Competition was incredibly tight behind the top three, with Raul Fernandez making a strong push in the penultimate hour to claim fourth spot for Trackhouse Racing. He narrowly edged out Franco Morbidelli, who continues to find form on the VR46 Ducati.

Six-time champion Marc Marquez maintained competitive pace to finish sixth, around half a second adrift of Acosta’s marker. Fabio di Giannantonio, continuing steady progress with VR46 Racing, placed seventh, with Bagnaia salvaging eighth despite a small crash in the closing stages.

Yamaha’s much-anticipated new V4-powered M1 was also a talking point of the test, having appeared during the San Marino GP weekend. Fabio Quartararo, Alex Rins and Pramac Yamaha rider Jack Miller took valuable laps on the prototype, aiming to accelerate development for next season.

Curiously, Miguel Oliveira did not ride the V4 but emerged as the fastest Yamaha rider of the day on the existing inline-four version, finishing 16th overall. Meanwhile Honda tested its updated chassis and different rear aero components with Luca Marini, Johann Zarco and Somkiat Chantra.

Aprilia worked through updates to electronics and prepared new components. KTM broadened its evaluation with fresh exhaust designs, revised swingarms and aerodynamic packages, one of which appeared without rear winglets. Ducati kept their testing programme discreet, putting effort into aerodynamic comparisons and swingarm development.

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Serving as both a technical trial and a strategic preview of the championship run-in, the Misano test provided crucial insight for all manufacturers. With consistency in conditions, teams were able to gather meaningful data to refine upgrades and plot improvements.