Pedro Acosta explains where he lost Portugal MotoGP sprint win
Pedro Acosta has explained where the KTM stopped him from winning the Portugal sprint
KTM’s Pedro Acosta says his bike was too weak compared to Alex Marquez’s Ducati in the final corner of Portimao, which is what lost him the MotoGP Portuguese Grand Prix sprint.
The 21-year-old bagged his first front row of the 2025 season on Saturday morning in qualifying, as he put his KTM second on the grid.
From there, Pedro Acosta fought to the end of the 12-lap sprint for victory against Gresini’s Alex Marquez, but was denied a first win by just 0.120s at the chequered flag.
While Acosta was able to attack under braking on his KTM, he admits the chance to win was lost due to his weak form in the long right-hander at the end of the lap compared to the Ducati.
“No, I mean, it was maybe the most exciting sprint race in the whole season for the fans,” he told TNT Sport.
“Also, I think it’s not a question mark that I gave everything I had in my hands.
“We did a really good race. We were 0.1s from the victory - the closest I ever was.
“For this, let’s try again tomorrow. It’s clear we were fast in the whole track aside from this last corner, where Alex and the Ducatis were quite competitive.
“But anyway, I hope that everyone enjoyed this show at home.
“I think there’s not many things to do in my braking points now.
“But we have to improve in this last sector. I think it’s clearly the point where we were losing the opportunity to fight for something more.
“But like I said, super grateful for all of the team and all the factory.
“They are really trying hard to give me a better bike.
“But, like I said, it is what it is now. We have to keep going. We have found some consistency on the podium or close to the podium. For this, we have to keep going.”
Tyre wear has been a continual issue for KTM this season, but Acosta feels this will be a concern for everyone on Sunday in the grand prix due to the lack of mileage done on the rear options.
“I think it will be a question mark for everyone, because no one has done a lot of laps on the rear tyres. For this, let’s see what’s going on.”
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