MotoGP | Acosta: “To explain our problems, I must first understand them”

KTM has been preparing carefully for the Austrian MotoGP Grand Prix, its home race at the Red Bull Ring, where Pol Espargaro tested in mid-July, with Pedro Acosta following all the progress and developments in the garage, eager to get on the bike at this circuit. However, all this motivation has not translated into the performance the Spaniard was looking for.

“We were looking forward to racing and instead I leave with a pain in my chest,” exclaimed the GasGas Tech3 rider. “It’s difficult, difficult to say anything. There were many problems that I didn’t expect to have. I still haven’t understood why these problems came, I have to sit back and cool down. This week I’ll be in Misano with the test team to see what they’re trying, and we’ll analyse it calmly. I don’t want to do anything in the heat of the moment,” he said, illustrating it with a phrase: “As they say, don’t make decisions in anger and don’t promise anything when you’re happy.”

The start of the meeting with the media already made it clear that the reigning Moto2 champion wasn’t in the mood for many jokes.

This week, starting on Monday, with on-track action on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Misano circuit hosts a private test with Yamaha, Honda and KTM. “It will be an interesting three days, to see if we can understand why it happened and how to avoid it,” he said, referring to the issues he highlighted.

“First of all I have to understand what happened and why it happened, because I want to understand. I don’t know how to explain or say what happened because I still don’t understand. Now let’s say that the test team is getting pretty good guidance. Today we had the best coach, Dani (Pedrosa). And a lot of the things he said, in my case, worked quite well. Since the Misano test will only be with Dani, I think I’ll be able to see a little bit better the direction they’re taking and understand other things, especially what happened to me this weekend here. You also get out of difficult moments,” he added.

Acosta will be in Misano from Monday to Wednesday, but he will not be able to ride the MotoGP. “If I go on track it will be with a Moto2, as I did in Austria in July. But I want to be there to see what is on the track and to understand how they are working. Misano is nearby and we will be able to understand how things develop,” he said.

So, he was asked to assess the percentage of the bike’s fault for everything that happened. “I can’t say, you know how I say things and, speaking quickly, I don’t have the balls to say that the bike is going badly. We are missing small things that we have to put together.”

“We are suffering in general, even Brad Binder who finished fifth was 18 seconds behind. That there are twelve seconds from fifth to thirteenth, I understand. But 18 from first to fifth is a huge difference. We need to understand what is happening. I blame myself for not having managed to get into Q2, if I had done it now I would not be here with this face, I would be here with champagne and flowers for everyone”.

KTM owner Stefan Pierer was of course present at the circuit. “At these Grands Prix, honestly, you never really talk to the bosses, there are so many things that are not done, but the clear message we got from them is that the project is moving forward and that KTM will be involved in the MotoGP project,” he said. “It’s reassuring that such a big factory is so focused on MotoGP.

The next race is Aragon, then the San Marino GP, official tests and the Emilia Romagna GP, all on the same circuit, in Misano, a repetition that can help Pedro.

“The Misano test will be very positive for us, as will the repeat of the race on the same circuit. It will be the first circuit where I return with MotoGP, I will be able to improve a lot from one weekend to the next”, said the boy from Puerto de Mazarrón.

Pedro Acosta, Red Bull GASGAS Tech3

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images