Pedro Acosta told ‘incredible’ move to Ducati is unlikely as he considers KTM future

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Pedro Acosta is bound to attract interest from up and down the MotoGP pit lane as he enters a contract year at KTM. The young sensation has expressed frustration with the limitations of his bike on several occasions this season.

It was recently claimed that Acosta offered KTM £1.3m to escape his contract after holding talks with Ducati satellite squad VR46. They refused, but he apparently has no intention of extending.

Honda are ready to triple Acosta’s salary as they eye an all-Spanish superteam with Jorge Martin. Acosta will need some convincing to join a team who are currently below KTM in the pecking order.

With Francesco Bagnaia struggling, Acosta was labelled Ducati’s primary target. But MotoGP reporter Jack Appleyard can’t see that move happening.

Pedro Acosta may not ‘gel’ with Marc Marquez at Ducati

During the series’ preview show before the Malaysian Grand Prix, Louis Suddaby suggested that every MotoGP factory would be chasing Acosta’s signature for 2027.

Appleyard, though, thinks Ducati may be the exception. While a partnership with Marc Marquez would be ‘incredible’, there may be concerns over their chemistry.

Valentino Rossi sees Acosta as the anti-Marquez, which is one of the reasons he was determined to sign him. Perhaps a move to the satellite team is more likely, though it would mean relinquishing factory status.

Acosta has great respect for Marquez, as he proved with a sincere tribute before his compatriot’s 2025 coronation. But his speed and his assertiveness could make it difficult to maintain harmony in the garage.

“Maybe not Ducati!” Appleyard said. “I can’t really see a Pedro Acosta and Marc Marquez pairing gelling too well. But, for us, I’d love to see them do that. That would be incredible!”

Francesco Bagnaia’s Malaysia Sprint win ‘definitively’ rules out early Ducati exit

Ahead of this weekend’s race, Acosta said he’d trade places with Bagnaia, even if the two-time world champion is puzzled by the idiosyncracies of the GP25.

These were on display again at Sepang as Bagnaia finished Friday in P12 but then emerged from Q1 to take pole position. He took a dominant victory in the Sprint race.

Ricard Jove says the win ‘definitively dispel any shadow of an alleged divorce’ between Bagnaia and Ducati, at least for 2026. If his inconsistency continues into next year, though, there might still be a vacancy next to Marquez.