Pedro Acosta could be the next big-name MotoGP rider on the move after Jorge Martin. But KTM are able to block his path.
Acosta won’t voice his KTM frustrations publicly, but in combination, paddock rumours and the Spanish rider’s demeanour paint a clear picture. He wants to leave and ride a winning bike instead.
The 2024 debutant matched his best result of the season with P4 in Aragon last weekend. But he may feel as if the Austrian company have regressed this year.
KTM are currently second from bottom in the constructors’ standings and are the only brand yet to score a podium this year. Acosta picked up five as a rookie for satellite squad Tech3 and came close to winning a race in Japan.
KTM learned from Jorge Martin mistake by denying Pedro Acosta performance clause
Martin, who’s also a client of Albert Valera, is set to leave Aprilia after triggering a performance-based exit clause in his contract. It was inevitable that he’d fail to meet it because he’s missed all but one round through injury.
In 2020, Martin left KTM through similarly controversial means. The start to the season was delayed by the pandemic, so his camp argued the team technically hadn’t met the stated performance threshold in time.
He exploited the grey area to join Pramac, and reports suggest Acosta could also ride a Ducati bike at VR46. But as Oriol Puigdemont explained on the Tank Slappers podcast, KTM have made his deal watertight this time.
“You can feel his frustration,” Puigdemont said. “His frustration is just because he doesn’t want to be there. It’s my opinion, I could be wrong, but the inputs I get are that he doesn’t want to be there.
“He has decided to leave. If he’ll be able to make it [out], I’m not sure. But he doesn’t want to be there, that’s for sure.
“He’s in a loop. He keeps saying the same thing – ‘I need help from the factory’. If you listen to all the other riders, they are super happy that the manufacturer is pushing, they went to the factory and they were super glad.
“With Pedro, it’s even more difficult [than Martin]. As far as I know, he doesn’t have this clause in his contract because KTM avoided all these after Martin left using that clause in 2020.
“In Pedro’s contract, it doesn’t exist. There’s nothing.”
Marc Marquez’s verdict on Pedro Acosta’s Ducati prospects
Acosta’s representative has arguably let him down here. KTM won the negotiating battle when they tied him down to fresh terms last June, and Acosta will now be regretting that multi-year commitment.
It was claimed earlier in the year that KTM had missed a deadline to tie down Acosta, but now the noises are that he has no way out of the agreement.
He may only be 21, but he’s impatient. He knows nothing is guaranteed in motorcycle racing, even if he seems destined to ride a contending bike sooner or later.
Marc Marquez has hinted that Acosta could achieve big things at Ducati due to his ‘incredible’ talent. But he may have to wait until 2027 to find out.
