The title of this review should have been: “I’m having a great time”. He described it this way Murcian Pedro Acosta (GasGas)brand new and precocious two-time Moto3 (2021) and Moto2 (2023) world championsix days of (almost) consecutive rehearsals Sepang circuit (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)Where all world champions meet for the first time at the christening of MotoGP. And the ‘Mazarrón shark’ had three days with the rookies and well, well, really three days.
And he, Acosta, Marc Márquez ‘The arrival left his new colleagues speechless (“wow! He has tremendous ease, confidence and determination,” said one of the 1,200 residents of the paddock). Aleix Espargaro), to engineers and critics. Acosta always ranked in the top 10, eventually finishing just over half a second (0.620) off the established best time. two-time champion ‘Pecco’ Bagnaia.
The best Acosta
“Yes, that’s right, you have to run to be there among all these monsters. And a lot. I agree that times are very good. I am aware that my progress and rhythm, which are two variables much more important than free time, are very, very good, but I am not ‘Superman’ yet. That long half second where I get the best results is the hardest to pull off. But here we are, fighting it,” commented Acosta, who was just 19 years old and had nothing to do with the brave kid who said “I shit my pants” after saving a drop off the KTM Moto3.
It is true that despite his much, much improved English, he continues to speak fluently, with tremendous fluency. It’s true that he keeps saying what he wants. But now he understands down to the millimeter that “this cannot be said.” So it would be a (small) betrayal to put into this piece the expression that he used, with a tiny mouth, almost silently, to describe his own situation during those six “endless” rehearsal days in Sepang. “But yeah, that’s what I’m saying?: I’m having a great time.”
One of the KTM MotoGP bosses says: “At least for me, who worked with Marc Márquez for two wonderful years in 2008 and 2009, once the incident with Acosta was announced, it was not difficult to guess.” He is not only very good, not only very fast, very fast, but also has an exclusive touch and an extraordinary ability to express his feelings. The latter is what separates good and good drivers from champions. That’s it, and champions act like champions when the time comes. And yes, I can say this: Pedro has a lot of things about the precocious Marc.”
It’s not easy to come to MotoGP and set off the alarms. “I have seen young people as talented or more talented than Marc or Pedro, but they lack the determination to learn and, above all, they are incapable of conveying to their engineers why they are fast and what sensations they experience on the bike. Without this knowledge it is impossible to move forward. If you stop here you will they crush it,” says one of the technicians at one of the World Cup suspension factories.
“When I started Moto2 the expectations were so high and I screwed up, I fell from the third floor and now it’s slowly”
“What Pedro did in this test was admirable and we all knew it would happen.” “I had no doubt,” he says. Marc MárquezHe always admired Acosta’s precocity and style. “Even for his confidence,” the eight-time world champion adds. “I’m very grateful for your praise, but it hasn’t started yet. You should see me in a full-on battle at a GP weekend, with all these monsters fighting for the top two rows of the grid. I want to see myself there.”
HE ‘Mazarrón shark’ It is very clear, crystalline, transparent. “It’s true that here at Sepang everyone gives everything at certain times and my time is very good, but you start from the back of the grid when you’re 0.6 off pole. In the last Valencia GP, there was only one second between first and last in MotoGP. Here “Everyone is full, you can’t sleep even for a second here.”
Acosta, who had a strange preseason (“I had surgery to remove the nail in my left femur on December 5th and couldn’t start training until Christmas”) gained four kilos “and it would be nice if it was between now and the summer” I’d gain a few more kilos But I’m in no rush.” He covered 1,300 kilometers in six days. “It’s crazy, I know the track by heart. There was a day when I told my team that I was going to do it the other way around for a change.” And he burst out laughing. A laugh like Marc’s, yes, authentic, original, the hallmark of the house.
learn every day
‘The Shark’ looks happy, very happy. It is known under the magnifying glass of the entire World Cup. Moreover, KTM knows that if South African Brad Binder fails in the next two years, Acosta will come in and give them the World Championship they are after with his immense power. Of course, Murcian does not want to talk about his current or future role. “Look, when I moved to Moto2 I had a lot of expectations and I got really injured, falling from the third floor! So no dreaming. For now.
“No matter what happens, it will be good. Even mistakes, failures, falls, disappointments. You learn from everything, everything is experience, everything makes you grow. The important thing is not to step back. Grow, move forward little by little. Learn every day. Ducati of MM93 “I’m on the ground and with the right brand,” comments the Murcian rider, who, in addition to his revolutionary, striking and eagerly awaited livery, is the main hero of the first three days of 2024 in MotoGP.