Spaniard Masia came to Qatar leading the championship by 13 points and needed to outscore his rival Ayumu Sasaki by 12 points to wrap up the title with a round to spare.
Masia has been something of a journeyman in the Moto3 class since making his debut in 2017.
It wouldn’t be until 2019 that Masia won his first grand prix, taking victory from pole at the Argentina GP on his way to ninth in the points.
Moving to Leopard Honda for 2020, Masia won twice to finish sixth in the standings and was fourth in the championship with a single victory the following year having moved to Moto3 class kingmaker Aki Ajo’s KTM squad.
Despite winning twice in 2022, Masia could only manage sixth in the championship and would return to Leopard Honda for 2023.
Coming from 10th on the grid in Qatar, Masia found himself involved in a chaotic 16-lap grand prix.
On several occasions, Masia and Sasaki locked horns on track. Twice did Masia come through aggressively, sitting up the Intact GP Husqvarna-mounted Sasaki. Masia was given a conduct warning for this.
Source: Autosport