PEDRO ACOSTA EXPLAINS WHY HE COULDN’T MATCH MARC MARQUEZ IN ARAGON

Pedro Acosta believes the key difference in his Aragon Grand Prix bid for victory against Marc Marquez was tyre performance. The factory KTM rider delivered one of the standout rides of the season at MotorLand Aragon, moving from sixth to third early and then making a decisive pass to put himself in the fight at the front. However, Acosta said that if he had continued to stay with Marquez for longer, he would have run out of tyre performance. In the end, he crossed the line 1.7 seconds behind his Ducati rival, finishing second.

Acosta’s own description of the turning point added detail to how the battle unfolded. He said he was aware he “wasn’t having that much (speed) for this,” but felt he had a window to close the gap when he was on the straight: “Come on, boys, it’s my moment!” According to Acosta, he managed to keep the same rhythm for many laps, but once Marquez got past him on Lap 16, he realised he could not respond with the same pace. “In one moment, he made this one small push, and I had no more for this,” Acosta said. He added, “We have to be happy because we are taking the maximum out of this package.”

The Spaniard’s comments framed the race as a balancing act between pushing hard enough to challenge for the lead and managing the tyres to avoid fading as the duel developed. He also pointed to the wider meaning of the performance, calling the fight with Marquez “a good test” and a sign of what KTM can do during the final stretch of the season. Acosta said the recent upturn from KTM has given him optimism, but insisted there is still work to be done: “We have to go track by track, see how many problems we have and try to solve it.” He also credited the team’s progress for enabling his weekend: “This means that the team is taking the energy that I am trying to bring every weekend. It’s good.”

Marquez ultimately won the Aragon Grand Prix in convincing fashion, after holding off both Marco Bezzecchi and Acosta, with Acosta acknowledging that the battle offered a glimpse of what awaits him next season. While he “worked magic” at Aragon, Acosta’s assessment remained clear that the performance was only possible because KTM has made the necessary improvements after earlier reliability and performance issues.

Bezzecchi, meanwhile, said he tried to make Acosta’s life difficult in the fight for second. The Italian rider capitalised on Marquez’s poor start to lead for the first few laps, before both Marquez and Acosta moved through. Speaking after the race, Bezzecchi said he wanted to keep the pressure on: “It was interesting. Marc overtook me in Turn 15. I tried to come back in the straight.” He described how the gap changed as the trio closed and opened up, adding that he “lost the line in the braking” and then “unfortunately… lost the place with Pedro.”

Bezzecchi admitted he felt Acosta was quicker on the day, but still regretted not doing more to disrupt the KTM rider’s momentum. “It’s a little bit of a shame. To be completely honest, I think Pedro was a bit faster than me today,” he said. “I probably would have finished third anyway, but I wanted to make his life a little bit harder and have a bit more of a battle. But I think third was the maximum I could.”

He also explained his mindset over the race distance, saying he initially tried to match the pace but realised the lap times “wasn’t coming the way I wanted.” “I was risking a bit too much, and I said, ‘Okay, my pace is this. I can’t do more.’” With the podium secured, he chose not to overreach: “At the end, it was the best choice.”

After Sunday’s result, the conversation also turned to the future. Acosta, who will join Marquez at Ducati next year, was reluctant to talk up a rivalry in the press. Marquez, speaking via El Periodico, said: “I said it from the moment I saw him win in Moto3: I think he’s a fantastic rider and I’m very glad Ducati didn’t let him get away,” adding that “there are generational changes that can’t be stopped.” Acosta responded via AS that he wants to focus on results: “Well, I’m going to try to get a few more podium finishes in the rest of the season, and we’ll see what happens when I’m wearing red,” and he added, “At the end of the day, I think I made a lot of mistakes last year by talking too much, so I’m going to wait until I’m on the bike. I don’t want to get ahead of myself and have it not turn out the way I want it to.”