PEDRO ACOSTA FINISHES FOURTH IN ARAGON DESPITE A DAMAGED KTM AFTER A Q2 CRASH

Pedro Acosta’s Friday at Aragon underlined both the promise and the limits of KTM’s RC16 package as MotoGP moved into qualifying. In FP1, the Spaniard was fastest among the KTM riders but also suffered a crash. In the MotoGP qualifying session, he recovered to take eighth place, and he was the only RC16 rider to progress directly into Q2. Against the pace set by the Ducati and Aprilia riders, Acosta said KTM had not been able to match the front.

Reflecting on the day, Acosta summed it up with a cautious optimism: “It could have been a better day, but it could also have been worse.” He added that he was pleased with the direction of travel between sessions, saying he was “happy” because the team improved the bike from FP1 to qualifying. However, he admitted the progress was harder than expected: “I hope that on Saturday we can take another step, but honestly, it was more difficult than expected.”

Acosta also pointed to how well the circuit suits him and KTM’s characteristics. He noted that in 2025 he finished with fifth and fourth places at the venue. This year, though, he highlighted a key difference in tyre choice from last season: “Last year I rode the race with the hard front tyre, and I got more support from it. This year we didn’t have that tyre, so today I had my problems.” After Friday’s work, his focus shifted to preparation rather than chasing immediate gains: “Now it’s time to rest and analyse the data. We also need to see what the other KTM are doing.”

KTM had revised the RC16 engines in Munderfing ahead of the Aragon weekend, replacing supplier components that were described as damaged and performance-relevant. Acosta was asked whether he felt any change in power. His answer was clear: “No, the engine is the same. We’re looking for consistency, not performance. It’s important to finish the races.”

Grip levels were another theme. Aragon’s surface is known for offering less traction than many other tracks, and Acosta described Friday’s conditions as challenging: “The grip is quite low.” Despite that, he said he was surprised to break the old lap record, attributing it partly to the track’s cleanliness and the effect of following riders: “The track is also a bit dirty. If you ride behind someone on the straight, a lot of dust gets kicked up. I hope the track will be cleaner over the next few days.” He warned that when riders have to push wide into corners, it can feel “a bit on the limit.”

Later, in the Aragon MotoGP Sprint, Acosta kept KTM’s best hopes alive despite damage and a difficult build-up. After crashing in Q2, he started from P6 and then fought his way to fourth, finishing 2.6 seconds behind winner Marc Marquez on the Ducati—while being, by a wide margin, the top KTM rider. Enea Bastianini was the next RC16 rider home in 14th.

Acosta said he wasn’t fully satisfied: “I have made too many mistakes in the race. I think I have more potential. But it is what it is.” He added that the KTM generally felt good. He also described how the Sprint start went wrong after the ban on the front starting device made it harder for KTM to get away cleanly: “At the start I made a mistake. I lost my position and had to make it back. During that, a wing broke off behind my back.” The damaged aerodynamics then affected his control in fast right-handers, where he said it was “really hard” to manage the bike. He also pointed to time lost in his fight with Jorge Martin: “By fighting with Martin I lost a bit of time. We could have done better.”

Even so, Acosta highlighted a positive milestone: “I’m happy, because for the first time in my MotoGP career I rode my fastest race lap on the last lap.” He also framed P4 as a success given how tough Friday had been: “P4 makes me happy when I think about how difficult it was for us yesterday.”