The 19-year-old Spaniard has been generating incredible amounts of hype in the grand prix paddock since making his Moto3 debut in 2021, when he scored a maiden win in just his second race and having started from pitlane, before winning the title.
After his second year in Moto2 with the KTM-backed Ajo squad, Acosta won the championship with two rounds to spare but had already secured his MotoGP debut with Tech3 for 2024.
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Many have drawn comparisons between him and Marc Marquez, with Acosta’s set to be one of the most anticipated rookies seasons ever in MotoGP.
Just 1.2 seconds off the pace in his first official test on the GasGas-branded KTM in Valencia last week, Acosta moved to downplay suggestions he can be a title contender from the off.
“I hope not too many,” he joked when asked how many seasons it would take him to fight for the MotoGP championship.
“No, in the end, we’re not going to talk about the championship because it’s stupid after one day of test for this.
“I don’t know, it’s true that I’m not going to talk about me, I’m going to talk about the bike.
“It’s going to be so competitive. I don’t know next year, I don’t know the next.
“But it’s going to be so soon. The bike, you cannot imagine how many people are working on this. The bike is going to be so fast so soon.”
Acosta says KTM has not put any pressure on his shoulders about his MotoGP debut and praised the Austrian marque for its support.
“In the box and also in the brand, nobody compared myself with anyone,” he added.
“I’m so happy about this because also it’s quite difficult for everyone when you have expectation about one guy and these things.
“But, I have to say that everyone in the box and around the Pierer Mobility Group, they give me their 100% in me without thinking about results.
“This is quite important. My crew chief Paul [Trevathan] is here since the project started with Pol [Espargaro].
“The thing that he always said to me before I go out was ‘if you want to change something, tell me, I’m here for you’.
“And I say ‘no, I am here for you’. He knows how to help me to understand how to ride and he knows perfectly the first tools you need to prepare the bike for this.
“I’m happy to be in this group of people. They are quite amazing and they are quite open to help me how to arrive for this.”
