Inside Pedro Acosta’s MotoGP grid ritual with crew chief Paul Trevathan - Exclusive

It is a scene familiar to MotoGP fans.

In the tense final moments on the grid, Pedro Acosta’s crew chief, Paul Trevathan, is often caught on camera delivering an intense, last-minute talk into the Red Bull KTM rider’s ear.

A focused Acosta remains stony-faced, usually responding only with a series of nods as he listens carefully to every word.

So what exactly is being said?

“It's going through a checklist,” Trevathan told Crash.net.

“We've already talked about the plan for the race, what we believe technically he might need to do throughout the race.

“So it's going through a little checklist - the simple procedures ahead of the warm-up lap and the start - and making sure that he knows I'm there for him.

“This is our little thing that we do. We have a little intense moment on that grid, but it's something we have always done.”

"I’m there for him; he's not alone"

Beyond reminders, Trevathan says the exchange is about reassurance, at a time when riders are at their most isolated.

“It’s showing I’m there for him; he's not alone," Trevathan said. "These guys go out and prove 22 times a year how good they are. They show that to the world.

“But they're also out there by themselves. And if you're having a bad day, it's not a nice place. You have the press and all the other things after a race that can bring you down.

“People forget that it's a bloody tough sport out there.”

Acosta transformed a frustrating start to the 2025 MotoGP season into a remarkable second half, scoring twelve podiums and climbing to fourth in the world championship standings.

Joan Mir: "Santi's more nervous than me!"

Trevathan certainly isn’t the only crew chief seen looking intense during the MotoGP grid activities.

Another is Santi Hernandez, formerly Marc Marquez’s Honda crew chief, who now works with Joan Mir.

“He's more nervous than me,” Mir joked to Crash.net.

“Normally, we don't speak so much on the grid because we speak before.

“Then the exact grid conversation depends on what each rider wants to know, and also what the crew chief's style is.

“But normally with Santi we just speak about things like, which tyres have been chosen by the other riders, and about any last-minute changes.”