Pedro Acosta dissatisfied: "This KTM isn't enough

Acosta was curious to take part in the MotoGP test in Valencia: KTM brought some innovations that should help in 2026.

It wasn't a season in line with his expectations, and Pedro Acosta never hid that. He wants to fight consistently for podiums and victories, even contend for the title, but KTM did not allow him to dream of becoming MotoGP world champion. That said, his consistency in the latter part of the championship deserves credit, as he was always in the top 5.

KTM brought some aerodynamic updates to Valencia and the two-time world champion focused mainly on those during the MotoGP test day: "It was a pity to have to lose so much time in the garage in the morning - reports Motosan - but the afternoon went quite well. We mainly tested aerodynamic packages because we had to prioritize them. It’s true there were several other things, but they were secondary. We focused on testing the packages, comparing them with the standard one, and making a decision."

Acosta said he was fairly satisfied with how the updates responded on the RC16: "It’s true that the package worked well. I think it makes the bikes more stable, because our strengths are strong, but our weaknesses are very weak. It makes the bike a bit more balanced. We tested more things compared to last year. With aerodynamics there are many grey areas; it’s up to the team to analyze the data and see what we can learn."

The Spanish rider was asked if the test objective had been achieved and he replied negatively: "No, we didn’t go half a second faster. When we manage that, we will have achieved it."

Acosta believes the current KTM RC16 is not enough to aim for winning in MotoGP; he expects further improvements from the Mattighofen manufacturer: "No, this bike is not enough. But, as I said, a miracle wasn’t going to happen on Tuesday; otherwise we would have done it on Sunday. We’ll see what bike we find in Malaysia. I think we had a good day despite the few laps completed. Everything seems quite clear to go to Malaysia in February. We’ll see what happens."

Pedro spoke clearly to KTM: he wants extra effort to aim high in 2026. Pit Beirer is aware of this and stated that they will do everything to satisfy him and get him to renew his contract. We just have to wait for next year to understand what will happen.