Marco Bezzecchi
Pedro Acosta’s woes at KTM have continued as he crashed out of the Sprint race at the Grand Prix of Italy.
The Spaniard came into the Italian Grand Prix weekend off his joint-best result of the season at Aragon in P4. Despite the improvement in results, Acosta has been seen with ‘no enthusiasm’ in media debriefs when talking about KTM.
He looks to have ‘completely given up’ as he vents his frustrations towards the bike and its lack of performance compared to the frontrunners. But despite his dissatisfaction, Acosta ‘will not dare’ speak about leaving KTM as he claims he still has belief in the manufacturer.
The 20-year-old looked to carry the momentum from Aragon into Mugello as he put his RC16 P8 on the grid in qualifying. Acosta was almost three tenths off the pace of top KTM rider Maverick Vinales.
In the Sprint race, the Spaniard gambled with the hard front tyre and was running behind Vinales in the early stages. But on lap two, he ran wide into the final corner and fell off the bike into the gravel, causing him to retire.
Neil Hodgson reminded of Marc Marquez by Pedro Acosta’s crash in the Italian Grand Prix Sprint
Acosta’s move to start on the hard tyre did not pay off as he struggled to find temperature in the rubber in the opening laps. Speaking via TNT Sports 2 (21/6, 2:11 pm), Neil Hodgson was reminded of a similar mistake Marc Marquez made during his Honda days at Mugello.
“We saw Marc Marquez like that a few years ago on the Honda. You get onto that part of the track, you’re on the dirty part, you’re on the marbles, down you go,” he said.
Co-commentator Gavin Emmett added: “All the riders were saying yesterday, if you got off line, it’s a bit patchy in places. There are a few marbles, it’s a bit dirty and it’s a bit bumpy as well.
“This track is 15 years old in terms of surface. You can actually see from that lower angle, the rubbered-in racing line and Pedro just got outside, ran in a little bit, and with the hard front tyre as well, that was it.”
READ MORE: Everything to know about Pedro Acosta from net worth to girlfriend
Pedro Acosta’s crash at Mugello will do no favours for KTM as his frustrations continue
Acosta’s crash in the Sprint at Mugello will not be what KTM want to see, especially when the Spaniard is growing more and more frustrated as the weeks go by.
Acosta and teammate Brad Binder have demanded action from KTM as they struggle to find performance from the RC16. Tech3’s Vinales appears the most comfortable on the bike as he told his fellow KTM riders to adapt to what the machine currently offers.
But Acosta says KTM cannot rely on the RC16’s current form, despite Vinales’ claims. The 21-year-old has been highly critical of the bike all season as he struggles to find the same form he displayed in his rookie campaign last year.
With his latest accident in 2025, KTM will be desperate to find improvements to the bike. Sunday’s race presents another opportunity for Acosta to find a strong result, but his confidence will be shot after his crash in the Sprint.
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