Milestone have produced the goods yet again with another brilliant motorbike game in MotoGP 21. To find out what exactly makes this game special, check out our full review. If you're new to the officially-licenced MotoGP series, be sure to read our beginner's guide.
Whether you go with "full or official calendar", the Malaysian Grand Prix will be the eighteenth and penultimate race of your first tour around the world. The Malaysian Motorcycle GP would've celebrated its 30th anniversary this year, but has been cancelled again.
Table of Contents
Sepang is a joy to ride around in a MotoGP bike, but don't think that it's easy by any stretch. You'll need the right setup to be fast here, but we've got the guide you'll need right here!
Tyres
The abrasive and hot tarmac in Malaysia necessitates the hardest and most durable compounds available. The long corners and significant traction zones tear up the front and rear tyres, respectively.
Suspension
The front suspension needs to be in and around the middle default values for most of the areas of the front of the bike. This is to allow for a good compromise between the responsiveness and stability of the bike. Oil Quantity (6) and front spring hardness (5) have to be weighted towards responsiveness.
The front pre-load value needs to be down at 2 to help the stability of the ride, which really comes in handy on the incline and declines.
The rear of the bike needs to be setup differently to the front, as it has to be geared towards high mechanical grip. The exceptions to this rule are the pre-load value (6) and the single shock absorber extension (8), which are high to aid the stability of the ride.
Vehicle geometry
The vehicle geometry is required to be on the low side to aid responsiveness. Steering head inclination and trail have to both be at 0 for maximum turn-in. The steering plate position (4) and swingarm length (2) also need to be low, also in the pursuit of responsiveness.
Transmission
The gearbox has to be configured to allow for good acceleration through the lower gears. This is because the slow corners here are very slow, so you'll need lower ratios to help power out of them. However, the back-to-back straights require a high top gear, as you'll be close to 200 mph (320 kph).
The slipper clutch is best at 2 to help stability rather than responsiveness.
Brake System
There are big distances between the braking zones, but you'll need the strongest brakes possible to be fast in Malaysia. This is because of the high track temperatures, which can regularly top 50 degrees Celsius. It's also because of the severity of the braking that's required going into Turns 1 and 15.
340 mm high mass on the front and 220 mm on the rear is best and negates the added weight in better braking performance.
ECU
You'll have to optimise the electronic aids to be fast around Sepang. 4 traction control and 3 anti-wheelie aid is best to keep the bike pointing in the right direction. You can increase these further if you're struggling, though.
Engine braking should be up at 4 to help shave speed off of your ride through the long corners. Power mapping is best at 3 for a flying lap. Although, you’ll need to turn this around during some points in the race.
All of these can be adjusted out on track using the HUD in the bottom-right of the screen.
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