Fiery Pedro Acosta claims: ‘KTM are f***ing winners, but big MotoGP step needed soon’

Pedro Acosta has backed KTM as “f***ing winners” but urges the marque to make “a big step soon” after a “ridiculous” MotoGP British Grand Prix sprint in which he was eighth.

The 2025 season has not been easy for KTM, who has yet to officially score a podium, while Pedro Acosta’s anticipated championship challenge has not materialised.

All of this has led to speculation that the 2024 rookie sensation - who scored nine podiums last year - could quit KTM at the end of the season despite being under contract.

A difficult Saturday in low-grip conditions at Silverstone saw Acosta qualify a lowly 14th, from which he worked his way up to score two points for eighth - 9.1 seconds from victory.

Acosta fumed after the sprint, noting: “There was nothing more we could do.

“For sure, it’s quite frustrating that you don’t have the tools to play.

“It’s quite difficult when you are not even able to fight, because this race, ok we could fight to a point, but then it was ridiculous. But anyway, it was a good comeback.”

Acosta added that he is enjoying how he rides right now, but fighting for low-top 10 results “is not what I want for my career”.

“In the way I am riding, for sure I am enjoying it,” he said.

“It’s not enough for me to start 14th and then finish eighth.

“It’s not what I wanted, it’s not what I want for my career and it’s not what I’m working for. For this, I think everyone should make a big step soon - really soon.”

The 20-year-old indirectly responded to his 2026 rumours, noting that he can cope with this situation until the end of next year but added that something has to change soon.

Asked when he could expect a fix, he said: “I cannot see the future.

“I mean, I will make this and next year, but I cannot come here just to make laps.

“I want to come here to compete, even if it’s for top five.

“It’s like the race for us and the race for Ducati [was completely different]. But it’s tough to race like this, it’s like arriving one moment where you don’t have tools to compete.”

Pedro Acosta’s confidence remains high for KTM rebound

Though rumours have swirled that he is not happy with KTM’s progress in 2025, Acosta stood firmly behind the manufacturer when crash.net asked him how much confidence he had left in it.

“A lot. These guys, the work that they made in Moto3 was awesome, the work that they made in the last years of Moto2 was awesome,” Acosta, who won world titles with KTM in Moto3 and Moto2, said.

“How they prepare the Dakar, how they prepare the motocross, how they prepare the supercross, the enduro - these guys are fucking winners.

“Somehow we are missing something in MotoGP that we have to find.

“It’s like I want to say: these guys really know how to win championships and really know how to go to the most challenging races in the world and dominate.

“Look how [Daniel] Sanders did the Dakar: with all the respect in the world, it looked like he was riding with one hand.

“So, these guys are winners and sooner or later we will make a really big step. But I need this step soon.”