Marco Bezzecchi
Pedro Acosta is about to enter his second season in MotoGP. But he’s already established himself as a star of the premier class.
It was clear on his ascent up the ladder that Acosta was special. Fresh from blitzing the field in the Red Bull Rookies Cup in 2020, he immediately won the Moto3 title as a rookie.
A year later, he was fifth as a debutant in the intermediate class. And in 2023, he cleared the pack by more than 80 points, scoring seven wins and 14 podiums in 20 races.
Acosta immediately lived up to the hype at the highest level. He finished sixth in the championship, just two points behind lead KTM rider Brad Binder.
He came close to winning as a rookie, but crashed out of the Japanese Grand Prix after taking his first pole. Five podiums was still an excellent return.
If he was to enter the free agent market, then it’s not an exaggeration to say every other manufacturer would pursue him. Indeed, Valentino Rossi is already trying to lure Acosta to VR46.
Pol Espargaro says Pedro Acosta’s KTM wages are ‘difficult’ to sustain
Speaking to Motorsport Espana, test rider Pol Espargaro explained the situation at KTM. The racing team are trying to maintain business as usual against the backdrop of the company’s fight for survival.
Espargaro commended the team on the ‘big steps’ they had made with their RC16 over the winter. He hopes that normality will be incrementally restored.
KTM have tried to protect their ‘brand’ by keeping Acosta, and signing MotoGP race-winners Enea Bastianini and Maverick Vinales for Tech3. In context, this was a ‘difficult’ financial commitment.
Pit Beirer and co. would insist that no rider is bigger than the team. But their future would certainly be a lot less exciting without Acosta on their books.
“For them, it was very important to keep that brand active, keeping the competition going at all times, and trying to make it evolve, signing riders like Enea Bastianini or Maverick Vinales, or keeping Pedro Acosta, who are difficult contracts to sustain financially,” Espargaro said.
“But, even so, the brand has continued to bet, and the development process we have had this preseason has been very good. We have made big steps, the bike works better, and the only thing we all hope is that little by little the situation will be resolved, it will normalise and we will be able to compete with total normality.”
Pol Espargaro reveals the word at the KTM factory over their MotoGP future
Acosta reportedly earns £400k per year at KTM. His current deal expires at the end of 2026 and, assuming KTM are still competing by that point, they’ll likely have to offer him a significant salary hike.
For reference, Francesco Bagnaia is pocketing £6m at Ducati. If Acosta can prove that he’s just as good as the Italian, then he’d be within his rights to ask for at least seven figures.
KTM’s first priority is survival, then they can think about tying down the 20-year-old. There’s a risk Acosta could be without a full-spec bike in 2026 if there are budget cuts.
According to Espargaro, the word at the factory after dialogue with the hierarchy is that KTM will ‘continue to live’. But the next question is whether they will ‘live’ in a truly competitive form.
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