KTM “could not have expected” 2025 MotoGP form rebound

KTM team manager Aki Ajo admits the brand “could not have expected” to make the steps it did in the second half of the 2025 MotoGP season following a tough start.

The Austrian manufacturer came into the 2025 campaign surrounded by uncertainty, as a major financial crisis threatened the future of the brand.

When the race season started, KTM has seemingly taken a step back from where it was the previous year and struggled to replicate those results.

It took until the Czech Grand Prix prior to the summer break for KTM to officially register a first podium.

However, after this point, an updated bike led to KTM, and Pedro Acosta especially, becoming a consistent podium challenger in the second half of the season.

Reflecting on the year, Aki Ajo admits these results were hard to imagine during KTM’s difficult start to the year.

“If we look at results and points specifically, in the second half of the season, we have to be really happy,” the team manager told the official MotoGP website.

“We are really close to the top there, and of course, with Pedro we have achieved so many podiums.

“Generally, with the project and with all the riders, we have made steps.

“If you think about the first moments, like Austin, maybe we could not have expected to make these steps.

“But, MotoGP is really close now, the competition is so close.

“So, I would not focus too much on what happened around and too much about positions or everything.

“I think we need to focus on tne daily improvements in our project, and this is how we are measuring it, how we understand it, and how much by understanding we can improve.

“Better to keep the focus for that.”

KTM’s tough first half of the season prompted speculation that Acosta could leave the brand for 2026, with the Spaniard linked to Honda and admitting to conversations with VR46 Ducati.