MotoGP | Pol Espargaro: “Acosta has a riding style that cannot be copied”

Pol Espargaro had to make one of the most important decisions of his life in 2023, that of retiring as a MotoGP rider, despite having a contract with KTM for 2024. One of the reasons that influenced this decision the most, without a doubt, was that the Austrian manufacturer needed a saddle for its rising star, the Murcia rider Pedro Acosta. Pol understood the situation and stepped aside to allow the “phenomenon” to have his bike without interrupting Augusto Fernandez’s career.

Pol’s life has changed substantially since then, he has become a successful commentator on television, which, unexpectedly, fills him completely professionally, and can also kill the melancholy from racing as a KTM tester and doing some wild cards, like in the last Italian GP.

One of his new facets is to “help” Acosta as much as possible in technical terms and with some advice, although less and less. During the MotoGP Podcast “Po Orejas”, Espargaró spoke about the Moto3 and Moto2 World Champion.

“We praised Pedro a lot, but we have to understand that what he did is not something normal, it’s not something natural. He’s not a rider who comes from Moto2 and gets results. We probably won’t see him in MotoGP again for many years, to unless a rookie gets on an official Ducati, which at the moment has an advantage over the other bikes,” said the Spanish rider.

When talking about Acosta, we run out of adjectives, but Pol uses a very illuminating simile.

“If we were talking in intellectual terms, Acosta would be a genius. What Pedro does cannot be copied. I saw it in the shakedown in Malaysia (in February), in the pre-season, the way he transferred the weights of the bike, how was slowing down, these are things that cannot be learned”, he assured.

“As the years go by we realize that riding methods change and that there are barriers that cannot be overcome, which go beyond talent and commitment. Pedro has a riding methodology that cannot be copied”, he adds.

Another rider who wasted no time in highlighting the Spaniard’s riding was Jack Miller, according to whom it is impossible to replicate Pedro’s movements on the bike.

“I agree with Jack: no matter how much he, Brad (Binder) or any other official rider tries to copy Acosta, they won’t succeed, it’s impossible. Pedro has a very personal way of riding, a way of turning the bike with the his body which is unique”.

“And I give a lot of value to this, because I saw Marc Marquez debut in MotoGP, Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo. But at the time there wasn’t the level that there is now. Then there were four bikes that could fight for the title, while now all bikes are capable of winning. That’s why what Pedro is doing must be taken into great consideration. Especially because KTM is not yet at the level of Ducati, although I hope it gets there”, he concluded the native of Granollers.