Marco Bezzecchi
Pedro Acosta is currently one of the brightest talents on the MotoGP grid, and Neil Hodgson has named the attribute that the young Spaniard shares with the ‘king’ of the premier class: Valentino Rossi.
Despite having yet to add a premier class victory to his list of accolades in Grand Prix motorcycle racing, Pedro Acosta is widely regarded as one of the current riders on the grid who will dominate the category in future years.
Acosta is currently the leading candidate to join Marc Marquez at Ducati for the 2027 MotoGP campaign, a highly coveted seat that is of interest to pretty much every rider on the grid due to Borgo Panigale’s prowess in recent years.
Despite Massimo Rivola calling a partnership between Acosta and Marquez a ‘match made in heaven’, many have theorised on the potential sparks that will fly in the Ducati box with two highly ambitious riders both occupying it.
Agree or disagree – Pedro Acosta is the most exciting MotoGP talent since Marc Marquez
Neil Hodgson says Pedro Acosta now has the same ‘perfect’ attribute as Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez
During an appearance on the Racing Back podcast with motorcycle racing icons Nick Harris and Julian Ryder, former MotoGP rider Neil Hodgson offered his thoughts on an attribute that competitors need to have in order to succeed in the premier class.
The pundit began by recalling an instance from his own career, saying, “I remember going out in the first practice sessions as a wild card.
“I’d be sitting behind riders and purpose waiting for them to turn into the corner, and I’d let my brake off, and I’d sit them up. I was horrible, really. But, you sort of need that in you.
“If you don’t have that in you, you’re never going to win. And I’d sort of rediscovered that b——, excuse my language, in me, and that’s what I had.
“If you watch the greats, they’ve always had that. [Valentino] Rossi was the king of it. He’d always have, like, just perfect aggression at the right time.
“Obviously, [Marc] Marquez is the king of it. Pedro Acosta’s got it, hasn’t he? And you just need that.”
Being compared to The Doctor is arguably the highest compliment a rider could receive in MotoGP, and Acosta has made it clear that he doesn’t plan on toning down his aggression anytime soon.
Despite leading the MotoGP crash list in his 2024 rookie campaign, the young Murcian told his KTM crew that he will continue to seize every opportunity he possibly can, which is an impressive way to turn a negative record into a fairly positive one.
- READ MORE: Pedro Acosta thinks MotoGP has changed for the worse since Marc Marquez was fighting Valentino Rossi
Has Pedro Acosta lived up to the hype in his MotoGP career to date?
Pedro Acosta has also been previously told that he lacks one important trait that Valentino Rossi possesses
Acosta is certainly a rider to watch over the next few years in the premier class, but it is also clear that he has a long way to go before he is seriously considered to be on the same level as Rossi or Marquez.
His knack for putting himself in danger of crashing out of a race is also one of the main reasons why he doesn’t have a Grand Prix victory to his name yet in MotoGP.
MotoGP journalist Mat Oxley believes Acosta lacks the ‘shining intellect’ that was evident in Rossi throughout his multiple world championship-winning campaigns.
Aggression is a key component to finding success in the premier class, but keeping a cool head during intense situations is arguably as crucial.
He’s still got a long way to go in his career, but the development that Acosta shows as he matures in MotoGP should be fascinating.
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