“It’s tough” - KTM MotoGP rider outlines where Pedro Acosta is strongest

Enea Bastianini says the way Pedro Acosta rode to finish second at the MotoGP Aragon Grand Prix “is tough”, while noting he’s struggled to match the Spaniard in one key area.

Pedro Acosta scored his first podium since the Hungarian Grand Prix last weekend at Aragon, after he passed Marco Bezzecchi early on for second.

He was unable to overhaul eventual winner Marc Marquez in the end, though he was just 1.754s from the Ducati rider at the chequered flag.

It was a result that came after Acosta “asked uncomfortable questions” of KTM in the summer break, which he feels are producing better results on-track.

Acosta was 23.987s clear of the next-best KTM in the Aragon Grand Prix, which was eighth-placed Enea Bastianini.

“He rode exceptionally well,” Bastianini told Italian media, as reported by GPOne, at Aragon.

“I looked at the data, and he was riding really well.

“Above all, he managed to put all the pieces together.

“You could really tell he was riding with confidence. And when someone rides well and has confidence, you notice it right away.

“That, in my opinion, was the difference. Doing what he did today is tough. It’s not easy.”

Asked where Acosta is making the difference, Bastianini says the Spaniard is strong on corner entry.

“That’s where he makes the difference, and it’s something I haven’t been able to do well for quite some time,” he added. 

“I’ve lost a bit of my edge on entry, which used to be one of my best qualities.

“Since I arrived here [at KTM], that’s the one thing I still haven’t been able to regain.

“But we’re working on it; we’re doing everything we can to get it back.”

Bastianini says copying what Acosta does is not simple because of their respective riding styles.

The Italian also noted that Acosta is able to release the brakes and let the bike flow through corners, whereas his style is much more stop-and-start.