Acosta on Marc Márquez: “One of the last chances to learn from him”

For Pedro Acosta, the move to the Ducati works team in 2027 presents a special opportunity. The MotoGP winner will share the garage with Marc Márquez and compete against the experienced Spaniard on identical machinery. However, Acosta does not regard beating him straight away as his primary objective. First and foremost, he wants to understand how his new team operates – and learn as much as possible from his future team-mate.

“It’s one of the last chances a young rider will have to learn from him before he retires,” Acosta explained in an interview with the Spanish sports newspaper AS. “My main aim will be to find out how the team operates and how they work there. After six years at KTM, I know exactly how things work there. But I know nothing about what it will be like at Ducati.”

The 22-year-old therefore sees the move as a learning process. “First, I need to get used to it. Then I’d like to gradually pick up things from Marc. It will be one of the last chances anyone gets to learn from him,” Acosta emphasised.

Acosta compares Rossi and Marquez

The KTM rider is relaxed about the fact that Marquez won’t voluntarily reveal all his secrets to his new team-mate. When asked whether, in Marquez’s position, he would let a young rival learn from him, he replied with a laugh: “He’ll have to push hard in the races. So he’ll have no other choice.”

The extent of Acosta’s respect for his future rival in his own pit is evident from his historical assessment. “He’s on a par with Rossi. The two of them are the best in history. I see them on the same level,” explained the Spaniard.

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Marc Marquez und Pedro Acosta sind 2027 Teamkollegen bei Ducati

Foto: Gold & Goose

In doing so, he distinguishes between sporting achievement and impact beyond the racetrack. “Marc has achieved a great deal on the track, whilst Valentino has done so in the media. Valentino has drawn huge crowds everywhere. However, he also raced in a very different era,” Acosta elaborated. “Marc has competed against great riders such as Pedrosa, Lorenzo and Valentino and beaten them. He didn’t race against Stoner. He has achieved an enormous amount on the track, perhaps considerably more than off it.”

Acosta sees comparisons with Márquez as a mark of recognition, without viewing himself as a copy of the rider. “It flatters me. It’s always nice to be compared to a rider who has done so much for the sport and achieved so much on the track. But despite any possible similarities, Marc and I are two quite different people,” he noted.

KTM victory brought immense relief

Acosta will remain a KTM rider until he takes on his new role. His first MotoGP victory in Austria lifted a burden from his shoulders that had been building up for some time. “That first victory was absolutely essential for me. It was the only reason I got up every morning. I had so many doubts in my mind: why isn’t it working out, even though it had been comparatively easy in other categories or at other times?”, explained Acosta.

Looking back, he believes the success came at just the right time. “Perhaps I wouldn’t have performed well on a different motorbike, simply because of the frustration I was feeling at the time. After that difficult spell last year, I started to get results again, ride well and make a difference compared to the other riders on my brand. That’s when I was really ready for a challenge like this,” he explained.

Acosta also attributes the lack of further victories so far to the progress made by the competition. “Ducati has raised the bar enormously. Marc joined the factory team and raised the standard of the championship. Aprilia took a huge step forward. For some reason, we haven’t been able to make that step in three years,” said the Spaniard.

Nevertheless, he does not see any guarantee that Ducati will still have the strongest package under the new 2027 regulations. “It’s all still pretty much up in the air. I don’t think KTM has shown everything it’s got yet ahead of Valencia. I don’t think Aprilia or Ducati have either. Apart from the tyres and the fact that the bikes will be slower, we don’t really know what to expect yet,” Acosta emphasised.