KTM ace Acosta after another GP podium: “My motivation isn’t waning!”

“I was furious after the warm-up!” These were the words Petra Acosta spoke into the TV microphone during the podium ceremony at the San Marino Grand Prix, describing her state of mind earlier that Sunday morning. In the race, the KTM ace crossed the finish line in third place at the Misano World Circuit, securing a podium finish that hadn’t looked likely earlier in the weekend.

In the morning warm-up session, she could only manage 8th place: “Afterwards, I cheered everyone on and said to boss Pit Beirer: “If you set the bike up just the way I need it, then we can achieve something.” In Sunday’s race, the rider from Murcia and his machine were in better form and, just as in Aragon, he was determined to make his way up the field.

Pedro Acosta (KTM) erreichte das Ziel als Dritter vor Martin und Aldeguer

Foto: Gold and Goose

Starting from seventh on the grid, the 22-year-old crossed the finish line in fourth place after just the first lap. On the second and third laps, he was locked in a fierce battle with Alex Márquez, with the Gresini rider ultimately coming out on top. In his wake, Acosta closed in on Jorge Martin and overtook him at the halfway point of the race – a manoeuvre that secured him third place at the finish. Earlier in the race weekend, the 2023 Moto2 World Champion had not finished higher than sixth in any session, yet he said: “My motivation hasn’t waned!”

In contrast to the previous sessions, the Spaniard was also in sync with his bike during the Grand Prix and set the second-fastest lap of the race, ahead of Marc and Alex Márquez, who finished ahead of him: “I was fast and the bike was fast too. We’re still lacking a bit in the fast corners, but we have to be satisfied with the result, because we managed to turn the event around in our favour.”

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The podium finish meant Pedro Acosta moved up to fifth place overall in the World Championship standings. With 209 points, the rider is now six points ahead of the injured Trackhouse rider Ai Ogura and 14 points behind VR46 rider Fabio Di Giannantonio.