Pedro Acosta rejects Joan Mir’s ‘solution’ to avoid Johann Zarco’s Catalan Grand Prix crash

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Pedro Acosta does not agree with Joan Mir and Enea Bastianini that moving the start line could prevent Johann Zarco’s “serious” crash during the 2026 Catalan Grand Prix.

LCR Honda rider Zarco suffered a number of injuries during the first restart at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Sunday when his left leg got trapped in Francesco Bagnaia’s Ducati. Zarco had crashed into the rear of Luca Marini’s Honda at Turn 1, before collecting Bagnaia.

Race control red-flagged the Catalan GP for the second time while Zarco received attention in the gravel trap at Turn 1, before he was later transferred to hospital. The Catalan GP had already been stopped once after Gresini racer Alex Marquez had a huge crash with Acosta.

Marquez was helpless to avoid crashing into Acosta in Barcelona last Sunday, after the KTM rider’s engine suddenly cut out on the back straight. Marquez required surgery on his right shoulder to insert a plate to stabilise a fracture and has a small fracture of his C7 vertebrae.

Pedro Acosta disagrees that moving Barcelona’s start line can avoid a repeat of Johann Zarco’s crash

Zarco has been diagnosed with ligament damage in his knee, along with a small fracture at the bottom of his left fibula, as a result of the injuries he sustained in the Catalan GP. Zarco and Marquez both face uncertain spells out of action while they recover from their injuries.

READ MORE: Fabio Di Giannantonio wins the 2026 Catalan Grand Prix after two red flags

Honda ace Mir and Tech3 rider Bastianini have suggested that MotoGP can possibly avoid a repeat of Zarco’s crash during the Catalan GP by moving the straight line in Barcelona closer to Turn 1. Barcelona has one of the longest runs from pole to Turn 1 at close to 600 metres.

But Acosta disagrees with the suggestions that moving the start line closer to Turn 1 would be the solution, as the heavy braking zone into the right-hand corner could still result in the type of crash that Zarco had, due to riders often braking too late and tagging a rival’s bike.

“What a solution…,” Acosta said, via quotes by Motorsport.com: “If the start is closer to the first corner and you brake too late, the same thing happens to you here as it did in Hungary. I don’t think that’s the solution.”

Also, much like he did immediately after the race, Acosta is clear that the Catalan GP should not have restarted a third time. The KTM racer is adamant that MotoGP striving for the race to restart was “a bit of a temptation of fate” by the series after two “such serious accidents.”

“Zarco’s accident was really unlucky,” Acosta added.” It’s very unlikely that what happened to him would happen to you, his leg getting caught in Pecco’s bike. It’s really bad luck. The same goes for Alex.

“It’s true that bikes end up against the wall at Turn 2. The same goes for Turn 12, where Jorge Martin crashed on Friday. But, all in all, I think everything here in Barcelona is pretty safe.

“There are circuits in much worse conditions. Here, at least they can move the grandstands further back and create escape routes.

“In Jerez, for example, if you crash at Turn 7, like I did in my first year in MotoGP, you can’t move the grandstand further back, because the last corner is on the other side.”

Aprilia rider Martin endured a crash-strewn weekend at the 2026 Catalan GP, with the 2024 champion producing falls during FP1, practice, qualifying, the Sprint Race and Monday’s in-season test. Raul Fernandez of Trackhouse even crashed into Martin during the Catalan GP.

Acosta has referred to Martin’s crashes at Turn 12 during FP1 and Turn 2 during practice last Friday as examples of bikes finding the barriers. Also, Martin followed his bike into the T12 barrier after his crash, during which he said he “thought of Luis Salom” who died in practice for the Moto2 Barcelona race in 2016 when he followed his bike into the barrier at Turn 13.