MotoGP, Acosta: "I want more, but Marc and Jorge were smarter than me today"

Even if he's one the big stars of MotoGP, once again, Pedro Acosta isn't entirely satisfied with how his Saturday went. Starting from a second position after a resounding qualifying session, the two-time world champion aspired to get the Red Bull GasGas Tech3 team's RC16 back on the podium after his third-place finish in the Portuguese Grand Prix. Despite having put up a good fight for second place with Marc Marquez, the 19-year-old rider had to  first surrender to the eight-time champion and then to Jorge Martin's comeback, as he  snatched the bottom step of the podium from him.

"I'm not too happy. Today, I was so close and, at the same time, so far away. In the end it is like love, you have to suffer to get better. Today it was so close that it hurt a lot and that will make us better for tomorrow. Anyway, I don't like to lose, and it gets worse and worse, from year to year. But, looking at the positive things, this was the first day where we were very fast in qualifying, where we made a good star,t and where we were in a podium position for most of the race," Acosta stated. "In the end, Marc and Jorge were smarter than me today. They know exactly how to manage the race, at what moments to push or overtake. I have to learn from these things to be even faster."

Since this was only his third Sprint Race of his career, Pedro can't yet count on a wealth of experience like that of his rivals.

"After facing only long races for three years of my life, going from pre-qualifying to qualifying on Saturday, and then to the sprint in the afternoon, isn't easy," he admitted. "Usually, in a race, you have to think about managing, because you have twenty laps to go, while in a Sprint, which is on a shorter distance, you can keep the throttle open until the end. But you might also be able to do almost the whole race at ninety-five percent, and then push one-hundred percent for like three laps, the most important laps of the race, and that's something that Marc and Jorge had well in mind."

Not even being the first of the KTM riders as early as yesterday's practice is a consolation for Acosta, who aspires to much more than a pewter medal.

"Being the first of the KTMs isn't something I think about.We have to think that we have three faster bikes in front of us, and neither I nor the brand want to be in this position. We have to work on it, taking the good things from today. They were faster than in Portimão in the sprint, we're more competitive, and we're improving, but we want more. All of us who are here to compete want more," Acosta commented. He also showed improvement in braking in Texas. "Our bike is working very well in general. We're making progress, and we have to be more than happy with the work of our test team."