ACOSTA SEES MOTOGP TITLE FIGHT AS A DUEL BETWEEN MARTIN AND MARQUEZ

Pedro Acosta believes the 2026 MotoGP championship is now a contest between Jorge Martin and Marc Marquez, despite Marquez’s insistence that Marco Bezzecchi remains in contention.

Marquez’s victory at the Japanese Grand Prix brought him to within two points of championship leader Martin. The pair have begun to separate themselves from the rest of the field: Bezzecchi, their closest rival in third, is 49 points behind his Aprilia teammate Martin. Acosta is further back, 90 points off the lead, after finishing seventh at Motegi following a close fight with Trackhouse riders Raul Fernandez and Ai Ogura.

Acosta expects the title picture to come down to the two former champions, but says the next round in Indonesia could be significant for Marquez. “I think the World Championship will be a two-horse race,” he told Motorsport.com’s Spanish edition. “We’ll have to see how Marc fares in Indonesia, because it’s his weakest circuit. And on the circuits where he can’t afford to make mistakes, he doesn’t.”

Marquez, by contrast, has declined to rule Bezzecchi out, viewing the championship as a three-rider fight. Acosta is set to become Marquez’s teammate at Ducati in 2027.

The KTM rider also reflected on the Japanese GP, where Tech3’s Enea Bastianini finished fourth as the fastest KTM competitor. Acosta was puzzled by the difference between their performances, particularly after a change to the rear tyre. “I don’t understand how, with the same tyres, Enea was so fast and I was so slow,” he said. “It’s not normal that just changing the rear tyre affects me so much and makes it so difficult.”

Despite his frustration, Acosta praised Bastianini’s late-race speed and suggested the Italian might have challenged for victory with more time. “Enea’s performance was incredible; he could have won the race with just four more laps,” he said.