Di Giannantonio Responds to Pedro Acosta Le Mans Clash

Fabio di Giannantonio has insisted there was nothing personal behind his reaction after overtaking Pedro Acosta on the final lap of the 2026 French MotoGP at Le Mans.

The VR46 Racing Team rider drew attention after looking back toward Acosta moments after snatching fourth position at the penultimate corner during the closing stages of the race.

The gesture immediately triggered a response from Acosta, who felt the reaction carried a particular message following their intense battle throughout the grand prix.

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“Nobody overtakes me and then looks back like that. We will see each other again at the next race,” Acosta said after the Le Mans event.

However, speaking ahead of the Catalan MotoGP, di Giannantonio stressed that the glance was purely tactical and had absolutely no intention of provoking the KTM rider.

“When I’m on track, I always try to give everything and overtake the rider in front of me,” di Giannantonio explained.

The Italian rider clarified that he simply wanted to make sure Acosta would not immediately launch a counterattack into the final corner.

“I just wanted to make sure he wouldn’t pass me back, nothing more than that,” he added.

Di Giannantonio also admitted he was sorry if Acosta interpreted the incident as something personal.

“I’m sorry if he took it personally, but for me it was just racing. I passed him and wanted to keep my position,” di Giannantonio said.

The final-lap overtake also allowed di Giannantonio to move into third place in the 2026 MotoGP world championship standings, one point ahead of Acosta heading into this weekend’s Catalan Grand Prix.

Meanwhile, Acosta later attempted to calm the situation after his original comments generated significant attention inside the MotoGP paddock.

“It’s stupid to talk about something like this when we were only fighting for fourth place. That’s not the result I’m looking for,” the KTM rider stated.