Pedro Acosta (KTM) in Q2: Satisfied and aggressive despite two crashes

KTM factory rider Pedro Acosta was among the few riders to crash at the start of the British Grand Prix. The youngster from Murcia took a tumble on his RC16 in both free practice and the crucial afternoon session. The timing of the crash in qualifying was unfortunate. After the crash in the corner, the Spaniard was unable to mount another attack.

And yet they managed to achieve what the team failed to do just over a year ago at their last visit to Silverstone. Acosta: “We have to be satisfied – because we’ve now gone straight through to Q2. Especially as this track doesn’t particularly suit my riding style or our bike. We knew that from past experience, and yet we performed well in terms of pace. We’re not far off at all. It’s a gap that should give us cause for optimism. I’m convinced that if everything clicks and we don’t make any mistakes – then we can fight for podium places.” The future Ducati factory rider owed his place in the crucial session to two impressive laps right at the start of the decisive phase.

Spurensuche in der Box von Red Bull KTM Factory Racing

Foto: Gold and Goose

Acosta, who had already finished third in FP1, improved his time by 1.6 seconds on soft tyres. This briefly put him at the top of the timesheets. And yet it came down to the wire once again. After even Joan Mir (Honda) and Jack Miller (Yamaha) had overtaken him, it was just enough for the crucial 10th place. His team-mate Enea Bastianini, however, came away empty-handed, finishing the qualifying session in 11th place.

When asked about the crash that afternoon, Acosta could do little more than shrug his shoulders: “When it happened, I felt the bike chattering. We’re still investigating exactly where that came from.” There were no further problems with the bike. Nor was there any sign of the alleged lack of performance on the fast track. On the contrary: his Tech3 team-mate and Vinales’s stand-in rode the fastest bike on Friday (341.7 km/h), whilst Enea Bastianini was listed in fourth place, ahead of the fastest bike from Bologna.

Topic of the week

The 2027 Formula 1 grid: Will the transfer bombshell only drop in the autumn?

Summertime, holiday season, the silly season: these are the weeks when the most outrageous driver changes are usually discussed. The big news for the 2027 season is yet to materialise.

Read more

TV program

Tomorrow

Silverstone: International Livestream

MotoGP World Championship

08.08.2026 - 10:35