Marco Bezzecchi
VR46 unveiled their bike for the 2026 MotoGP season in Rome on Wednesday. Everything is set in stone for the team, but things could have looked a lot different.
Team owner Valentino Rossi and riders Fabio Di Giannantonio and Franco Morbidelli took off the covers of VR46’s 2026 bikes on Wednesday. But there was a notable absentee: Pedro Acosta.
Rossi’s team has long been linked with the KTM star. Acosta tried to break his contract as he expressed frustration over the RC16’s lack of competitiveness and his constant crashes at the start of 2025.
What do you think of VR46’s 2026 livery change?
It seemed that a move to the Ducati satellite team was seriously on the cards. Acosta posed in front of VR46’s sponsor board in Assen, much to the annoyance of Di Giannantonio, who told the Spaniard to show more respect to KTM.
In the end, no move materialised as Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta wanted riders to honour their contracts and KTM were unwilling to negotiate a transfer fee. But at the end of 2026, VR46 are free of restrictions.
Uccio Salucci previously said VR46 will do everything to sign Acosta, suggesting that he is their top target for 2027. However, at the team’s 2026 launch, he changed his tone, and it will cost them.
Uccio Salucci says VR46 will wait until the middle of the 2026 season to make Pedro Acosta decision
Speaking to GPOne, Salucci shared that VR46 will wait until mid-season to decide their rider line-up for 2027, wanting to give Diggia and Morbidelli a chance to prove themselves.
He said: “Look, with Pedro, there was an opportunity halfway through last year and he wasn’t happy at KTM, his manager came to talk to us, I listened, why not?
“I knew it was impossible, he had a contract with KTM, but when management comes to talk to you, I listen, and if there was a possibility, I don’t know, it was more of a tentative discussion.
“Then maybe, I don’t know, next year. Now I want to promote my guys because they are worth a lot to me. Making them as strong as possible, exploiting them is not a past term.
“Yes, because they are guys who deserve it, in my opinion, they are very strong. Then, from the middle of the championship onwards, we’ll see what to do.”
READ MORE: Everything to know about Pedro Acosta from net worth to girlfriend
Pedro Acosta wants to secure his MotoGP future before the 2026 season, and he may already have
This may seem a logical approach as teams will want to weigh up their options. But in reality, as per a report from Motorsport Espana, ‘the most coveted grid positions for 2027 are expected to already be filled’ by the fourth race in Qatar.
Furthermore, Acosta wants to finalise his future before the 2026 season. Therefore, Rossi and VR46 would be way too late to sign the KTM rider if they are set on waiting until the midway point of the season.
Finish the sentence: In 2027, Pedro Acosta will ride for…
Rumours have even suggested that Acosta has already got his 2027 contract amid strong links to Ducati and Honda. VR46 may have already missed their window.
Acosta wants to be the world champion and to do it on the fastest bike on the grid. Rossi wants VR46 to win races, and the Spaniard is the golden ticket that they could have already let slip between their grasp.
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