Marco Bezzecchi
Despite losing out to Alex Marquez by just 0.041s at the chequered flag, Neil Hodgson saw ‘perfection’ from pole-sitter Pedro Acosta in the Catalan Grand Prix Sprint race.
After claiming his second pole position of the season earlier today, Pedro Acosta followed it up with a barnstorming performance that saw him miss out on a race win by the narrowest of margins.
It was Alex Marquez who took the chequered flag first in Barcelona, but it was Acosta who was given the plaudits after another fine performance atop somewhat sub-optimal KTM machinery.
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Acosta’s struggles were evident all the way through the shorter format race. He spent the first half of the 12-lap race out front, but it was clear that he was holding up the rest of the pack as Marquez remained close behind.
Once the Gresini star was able to get into the lead, he quickly stretched out a few bike lengths of an advantage. However, Acosta simply didn’t give up. While Marquez excelled in the high-speed corners, the young Murcian made up for it in the braking zones.
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Neil Hodgson issues ‘perfection’ verdict on Pedro Acosta during Barcelona Sprint
During TNT Sports’ coverage of the Catalan Grand Prix Sprint race, MotoGP pundit Neil Hodgson had nothing but praise for Acosta’s racecraft at the Montmelo-based circuit.
After Acosta was usurped by Marquez, he quickly found himself under pressure from Raul Fernandez, who wasted no time in picking the KTM rider off.
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However, the 21-year-old immediately answered back, with a lunge down the inside at turn 10. Hodgson praised Acosta for showcasing his experience, reacting with, “Normally, you go wide up there, but not the wily Pedro Acosta. That was timed to perfection.”
The 2003 WSBK champion also hailed Acosta’s prowess in the braking zones, identifying how he would always make up the differences in bike performance through his extreme bravery and second-to-none feel for the tarmac.
“He’s coming, Pedro is,” Hodgson said, as Acosta chased Marquez down for the lead. “It was 0.6, it’s now 0.3, and it’s always in the braking zones.”
Again, as Acosta tried to close the gap even further, Hodgson highlighted his ‘impressive’ feel for the bike underneath him.
- READ MORE: Pedro Acosta identifies where KTM still have ‘a lot of work to do’ despite Catalan Grand Prix pole
As the KTM rider approached the notoriously challenging turn 10, he said, “Pedro on the brakes into there, I know you get a slight concertina effect, but that was impressive.”
After the chequered flag flew, Hodgson paid his respects to the top two, hailing Acosta for his effort.
“Well, respect to Alex Marquez, he did everything perfectly, defended well,” he said, before adding, “But massive respect to Pedro Acosta, he could not have tried any more. We saw how much time he was losing on those long corners, but it was an impressive race.”
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