Marco Bezzecchi
Marc Marquez had his work cut out for him during the Japanese Grand Prix Sprint race, highlighted by his words to KTM’s Pedro Acosta following their second and third place finishes, respectively.
Francesco Bagnaia went on to secure his first Sprint win of the season, seemingly turning around his recent fortunes in the premier class after also claiming pole position in Saturday morning’s qualifying session.
Marquez’s haul of nine points in the Sprint means he has the opportunity of securing his seventh MotoGP title at the conclusion of the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday, providing he isn’t outscored by his brother Alex Marquez by six points.
Acosta has a lot of respect for Marquez and his current championship push, hailing his “brutal” return to MotoGP following the awful injury-ridden spell that the six-time premier class champion has had to battle in a bid to return to competitiveness.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Marc Marquez from net worth to girlfriend
Marc Marquez lauded Pedro Acosta’s brave overtake at the start of the Motegi Sprint race
The Japanese Grand Prix Sprint race is the fifth time this season that the two Spanish riders have shared a podium together across all formats of racing in the current campaign.
Despite the respect that both riders hold for each other, there is a clear rivalry also beginning between the pair. After Acosta’s first Grand Prix podium of the season in the Czech Republic, paddock insiders felt like Marquez is keen to put Acosta “in his place”.
However, in an unseen moment, documented by MotoGP, after the celebrations of the Sprint race in Japan, it’s clear that the pair of Spaniards hold a deep appreciation for how they both go racing.
| Marc Marquez | Pedro Acosta |
| “F—! What an overtake at turn three on the outside!” | |
| “When you closed the line, I said, ‘I’d better go that way because it’s the only place without riders.'” | |
| “When I saw you entering turn four, I said, ‘I’m going to accelerate and I’ll go more to the outside.'” | |
| “Honestly, I thought that you went to the kerb and got stuck.” | |
| “No, no. I didn’t even touch the kerb.” | |
| “You didn’t touch the kerb?” | |
| “No, that one was when you overtook me again. I said, ‘How these guys use their tractions!’ I was on the limit and was like, this can’t be possible.” | |
| “Tyre management, mate!” | |
| “At the beginning, I said, ‘It’s now or never!'” |
Acosta has voiced his frustrations with the performance of his KTM throughout the current term, and was linked with a potential move to VR46 before MotoGP’s parent company, Dorna Sports, stepped in to stop any contractual obligations from being broken early.
That didn’t stop the Murcian rider from dreaming, though. Acosta believes he is the man who could dethrone Marquez after previously stating that it is possible for him to achieve the “difficult” feat of beating the Ant of Cervera on equal machinery.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Pedro Acosta from net worth to girlfriend
Pedro Acosta says the KTM bike has ‘improved’ since last year’s Japanese Grand Prix
Pedro Acosta has been the lead KTM rider for the majority of the current season, and that was no different in Japan. The Murcian rider qualified fourth, with the rest of the KTM stable failing to qualify above 18th place.
Speaking to journalists, via Moto.it, after the conclusion of the Sprint, Acosta was happy with the improvements his Austrian team have made since last year, but identified some areas that need further buffs in order to meet his expectations.
“I’ve improved my braking a lot,” Acosta noted. “I was lacking a lot in traction compared to the Ducatis, but whatever.
“We’ll see tomorrow with the medium tyre and the long race: it will be a race about tyre management. We’ve improved compared to last year, but we’re also riding faster. Ducati made a good step forward with the way they started the weekend, so let’s try to do the same.”
With seven premier class podiums already to his name, Acosta is yet to secure a maiden victory in MotoGP. If KTM are able to give him the right tools for the job, there’s no doubt we will be seeing him on the top step of the podium one day.
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