Pedro Acosta says a win at the Austrian MotoGP this weekend would be the "perfect way" to finish his time with KTM. The Spaniard remains winless in MotoGP, while KTM has not won since Thailand in 2022.
In dry conditions, KTM's last victory was in Barcelona 2021. The RC16's most recent win came at the Red Bull Ring by Brad Binder, who braved slick tyres in the wet final two laps. Now, Acosta has a chance to repeat history at the same track.
Ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix, KTM test rider Pol Espargaro said this weekend is a good opportunity for Acosta to claim his first premier class win and KTM's first in almost four years. "Let's see if the weather helps us a bit," Acosta said in response to Espargaro's prediction during the pre-event press conference.
Acosta admitted his team is in a good mood after strong recent races. "We are also coming in a good mood, the last couple of races were quite good for us and it's just a matter to see how the bike is working tomorrow. It looks like we are making a step – for this, let's see what's going on," he added.
For long-time KTM man Acosta, a Red Bull Ring victory would be a perfect way to sign off before heading to Ducati in 2027. "Will be the best way to finish a circle. At the end, I was in KTM since I was 16, I know everyone since I was a kid and will be the perfect way to finish a story, knowing that we are far from fighting for the championship with these two [Marquez and Martin]. For this, if we get a victory here it will be a dream come true and the best way to finish a story," he said.
However, Acosta remains realistic. He believes Ducati and Aprilia are still faster than KTM at the moment. "We cannot think about the victory at the moment. It's true that it's our home GP, but at the moment Ducati is one step forward than us, also Aprilia. You only have to see how competitive Marco [Bezzecchi] was last year, and normally Ducati – not only Marc [Marquez] – is working okay here. For this, at the moment we are still far," he explained.
Acosta is also not expecting any major performance step on the RC16 this weekend to chase that elusive first premier class win. "Looks like not any new crazy things that can really make us make a step," he admitted. "But we arrive here in a good mood; last year was really good races here with Sprint podium and P4 in the main race. For this, let's see."
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