Pedro Acosta experienced a setback just before the start of the Moto2 Australian GP. The rider crashed during the sighting lap at Phillip Island.

In wet and windy conditions, the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider lost control of his Kalex during acceleration. Fortunately, he didn’t sustain any injuries, but the bike had to be retrieved.

After the incident, Acosta couldn’t get his bike started. However, the motorcycle was eventually brought to the pit lane, and the championship leader’s participation in the race was not in jeopardy. Nevertheless, he would have to start from the back of the grid.

O conteúdo Pedro Acosta, a «victim» of the challenging conditions at Phillip Island, crashed during the sighting lap aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Fermín Aldeguer continues to make strides in Moto2 and show why many regard him as one of the emerging stars in motorcycling, and proof of his talent was on display once again today at Phillip Island, where he secured pole position.

At the end of the first lap of the session, Pedro Acosta was the fastest on the track, 0.046s ahead of Arón Canet.

On the following lap, the third, Joe Roberts beat Darryn Binder to third place in the session, on the same lap that Acosta again improved his time, now to 1:32.633s.

With six minutes to go, Roberts showed that he wasn’t coming “just” to be among the best, but to be the best, and so he moved into first, but… for a short time: Fermín Aldeguer was the next to lead the session, with Canet taking second place and Alonso López rising to third.

Towards the end, Sam Lowes crashed in turn 4, but without seriousness.

The session ended shortly afterwards with Aldeguer confirming pole position on Australian soil.

O conteúdo Fermín Aldeguer sped to pole position in Moto2 at Phillip Island aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Pedro Acosta delivered a commanding performance at the Moto2 Indonesian GP in Mandalika, securing another victory. This result further solidified his path toward the title.

Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo/Kalex) made a strong start, taking the lead in the opening meters of the race before being overtaken by Arón Canet (Pons Wegow Los40/Kalex). Manuel González (Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp/Kalex) occupied third place, while Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS/Kalex) sat in fourth.

By the third lap, Acosta had reclaimed the lead. Shortly afterward, Fermín Aldeguer (Beta Tools SpeedUp/Boscoscuro) moved into podium positions, overtaking González and Arbolino.

In a relatively uneventful race in the top positions, Acosta managed to build a gap of around one second over Canet, who, in turn, created a lead of over two seconds ahead of Aldeguer.

The battle for fifth place heated up about ten laps from the end, with Arbolino coming under pressure from Jake Dixon (Inde GasGas Aspar/Kalex). Dixon eventually executed a successful overtake but made a mistake, relinquishing the position.

With just two laps to go, Dixon reclaimed fifth place from Arbolino, capitalizing on a moment when the Italian nearly lost control of his bike.

At the front, the order remained unchanged until the finish. Acosta celebrated his victory with an impressive lead of nearly two seconds over Canet, with Aldeguer completing the podium. Dixon managed to secure fourth place, overtaking González on the final lap.

Results:

O conteúdo Pedro Acosta took a commanding win at the Moto2 Indonesian GP and keeps getting closer to the title aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Despite his comfortable 50-point lead over Tony Arbolino, Pedro Acosta remains cautious, emphasizing that he still has a lot of hard work ahead before he can celebrate a potential Moto2 World Championship title.

‘The mindset is that when you can’t win, you need to achieve the best possible result’, said the Spanish rider from Red Bull KTM Ajo, explaining why he’s being so cautious.

‘Last year, I lost the championship early on. If I don’t stress out, I can go as far as possible. That’s what I’ve learned’, he added.

O conteúdo Pedro Acosta’s lesson for winning the Moto2 World Championship aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Friday in Mandalika for the Moto2 Indonesian Grand Prix ended with another record. Pedro Acosta set the fastest lap ever in the category at this circuit to lead the second practice, which he dominated.

Arón Canet (Pons Wegow Los40/Kalex) set the pace in the early laps, with Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS/Kalex) in second. However, during the second attempts, Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo/Kalex) and Manuel González (Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp/Kalex) moved into the top two positions.

While Acosta solidified his lead, Fermín Aldeguer (Beta Tools SpeedUp/Boscoscuro) moved into second, and Canet dropped to third, overtaking González. With just under half an hour to go, Acosta set a new record: 1m34.800s. Around the same time, his teammate Albert Arenas moved into second. They were then overtaken by Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS/Kalex) and González.

In the final quarter of an hour, more riders set times in the 1m34s range, but none could dethrone the top two. Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia/Kalex) and Aldeguer placed third and fourth, respectively. With six minutes left before the checkered flag, Canet surpassed Acosta to become the new leader and record holder.

The championship leader didn’t leave his position to others and regained the lead near the end lapping in 1m34.456s. He finished 0.180s ahead of Canet, with Lowes in third, González in fourth, and Ogura in fifth to complete the top five.

Timesheet:

O conteúdo Dominance and record lap by Pedro Acosta in the second Moto2 practice in Indonesia aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

In his MotoGP debut in 2024, Pedro Acosta will continue with KTM, joining the GasGas Tech3 team. Despite his talent making him a sought-after rider, he chose to remain loyal to the manufacturer from Mattighofen, which has done so much for his career since he arrived in Moto3.

During a press conference, the Spanish rider was asked if he had other options to move up to MotoGP. In his answer, Acosta assured that KTM was his only option, displaying a strong belief in the KTM project:

– I said from the first day that the guys who pushed everything to me in Moto3 were KTM. Also the ones who paid all my career from the moment I entered in the championship were them. For this I have to give the opportunity. At the end we see that now is a really competitive bike, I think it’s so, so close to the Ducati. For this, I think it’s a good moment to jump to MotoGP, it’s a good moment to do a good base with KTM and trying to stay with them because at the end in one or two years we are gonna see that KTM will be one of the best bikes of the grid.

O conteúdo ‘In one or two years we are gonna see that KTM will be one of the best bikes of the grid’ – Pedro Acosta aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

It was recently confirmed that Pedro Acosta will make his debut in MotoGP in 2024, becoming a teammate of Augusto Fernández at GasGas Tech3. He will thus enter the top class, a challenge he is not currently focused on – mainly because he has a Moto2 championship to contend for.

In a press conference, the future rookie stated: ‘It was a long way before to have this confirmation. But, anyway, we are here, everything is done. Now I just try to be focused in Moto2, trying to end the championship in the best way possible. And then I’ll try to be focused in MotoGP. But at the end it’s amazing to be in the box with Augusto – we shared a lot of good memories in Moto2 and why not to learn with him in my first year in MotoGP?’.

Despite going through several months of uncertainty about the future, Acosta assured that it didn’t distract him: ‘I said from the beginning I believed in KTM. In the end, we see they really pushed to give the best thing to me. Now I think it’s time to learn, try to be focused in important things. It’s true I wasn’t really focused on that because at the end I have one of the best managers here in the paddock, this was not my job. I was really focused to try to do a good job in Moto2, because from Moto3 I learnt that maybe in the end of the season I lose a little be the focus. Now I learn from the past’.

Aware that it won’t be easy to challenge the other KTM riders, the #37 doesn’t want to think about the future for now: ‘No challenges at the moment. First we have to end the Moto2 season in the best way and then we can start to think in other things. At the end I know that I have fast riders inside the KTM family, we see Brad [Binder] is usually fighting for victories, also Jack [Miller] is fighting for podiums, Augusto is arriving always in the top ten. It will be difficult to fight with them in the beginning, but we will try’.

O conteúdo ‘I said from the beginning I believed in KTM; they pushed to give the best to me’ – Pedro Acosta aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3 will continue to showcase some of the best and brightest Spanish talent in MotoGP as Augusto Fernandez and Pedro Acosta will surge into the 2024 championship with the GASGAS RC16s.

Reigning Moto2 World Champion and notable 2023 MotoGP rookie, Augusto Fernandez, will remain with the GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3 squad for his second term at the highest level. The 26-year-old Majorcan caught the eye with points-scoring performances in all but two of the 14 Grands Prix so far this season and has posted a personal best 4th place at the French Grand Prix. In Japan last weekend he notched his second-best classification with 7th place through tricky rainy conditions at Motegi. Augusto has shown potential and maturity while also progressing with his adaptation to the 2023 GASGAS RC16. He will be joined by the man who could be next in line for the Moto2 gold medal.

Pedro Acosta is in only his third full season of world championship competition but the prolific 19-year-old has won the Moto3 title (2021), Moto2 Grands Prix as a rookie (2022) and has snared 11 podiums from 14 rounds this year to head the standings by more than 50 points. Acosta has the ability, the racecraft and the sheer natural talent to join the MotoGP grid and complete a remarkable journey through the company’s talent structure from being Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup Champion in 2020 to premier class racer in 2024.

GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3 rider, Pol Espargaro, will fill a crucial and very valued position for the Pierer Mobility Motorsport project next year. The likeable 32-year-old was part of this joint-decision for both the short and long-term future of the company’s MotoGP goals. Pol is greatly appreciated for his commitment and experience; right from the very first days of the Pierer Mobility Group’s MotoGP entry up until his dedicated quest to return to competitiveness after injury sustained earlier in 2023. #44 is an important asset for supporting talented young athletes and maintaining the strength of the current racing set-up and his humility is evidenced by the willingness to assist the next generation hoping to follow in his footsteps. Pol’s character, energy and abilities mean he will still be a prominent member of the MotoGP program on both sides of the pit wall.

Pit Beirer, GASGAS Motorsports Director: “We had an important and difficult decision to make for our GASGAS team for 2024. Augusto has made impressive first steps in MotoGP and we are totally convinced he has the speed and the intelligence to keep on progressing. Pedro is a very special talent who has already won so much, so quickly and 2024 will be about him learning to take the next step with the big boys in MotoGP. I want to thank Pol for everything he has done and all he continues to do for us. This guy is super-tough and super-determined and that’s why we want to count on him as an important part of our structure. Pol’s openness and proactiveness deserves my deepest respect. It underlines his greatness as a person that he gave us a helping hand in this situation. It also shows his passion for the sport and his thoughts for the future. With these pieces in place and with Hervé, Nicolas, and all the team and their experience we have an exciting year ahead for the GASGAS brand.”

O conteúdo Breaking news: Fernandez and Acosta set to get on the GAS for 2024 MotoGP; Pol Espargaro joins Pierer Mobility to ‘support talent athletes’ aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Pedro Acosta, one of the rising stars in the motorcycle racing world, adopts a pragmatic approach when it comes to his career. Instead of getting entangled in speculations and rumors, he chooses to remain focused on the immediate goals ahead of him. His loyalty to KTM is evident, a brand that has been a cornerstone in his growth as a professional rider.

“From the beginning, KTM believed in my potential and invested in me. They not only funded my journey in the sport but also provided me with the tools and environment needed to thrive,” Acosta reflected. “Today, looking back, I see a bike that has evolved tremendously, teams that are at the top of their game, and a culture of competitiveness that’s hard to find elsewhere.”

When asked about Marc Márquez’s recent switch to the Gresini team, Acosta demonstrated his skill in sidestepping controversies. Instead of delving into speculations, he acknowledged Márquez’s legacy at Honda. “Marc is, without a doubt, one of the biggest figures in motorcycle racing. His contribution to Honda over the past decade is invaluable. He not only won titles but also played a crucial role in the brand’s evolution.”

Acosta concluded, “At the end of the day, each rider has their own journey. While Marc has his history with Honda, I’m here, focused on writing mine with KTM. The ultimate goal is always the same: to win the World Championship.”

O conteúdo Pedro Acosta on Marc Márquez: “A Living Legend of Honda” aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Pedro Acosta expressed his satisfaction with finishing on the last step of the podium at the Japanese Grand Prix in Moto2, behind the winner Somkiat Chantra and second-placed Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia/Kalex).

‘It was a really tough race. I made a mistake in the first corner. I miscalculated the start… After that, I stayed at a distance that I couldn’t recover from. However, this podium counts more than others because I wasn’t as good as in other weekends. These are good numbers and points for the championship. We’re doing a good job’, said the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider to DAZN.

Regardless of what happens for the rest of this season, the 19-year-old Acosta has already confirmed that he intends to stay in the Moto2 World Championship next season, although he doesn’t know which team he will be racing for, whether he continues with KTM or switches to another squad.

O conteúdo ‘These are good numbers for the championship’ – Pedro Acosta aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.