Pedro Acosta admits being at the top of the championship doesn’t feel right
· Yahoo Sports
Acosta shrugs off title talk despite leading MotoGP standings ahead of Brazilian Grand Prix.
Pedro Acosta has played down any talk of a title push this season, even as he arrives in Brazil sitting on top of the standings.
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The 20-year-old picked up 32 points in Thailand, including his first Sprint win and a second-place finish behind Marco Bezzecchi in the main race. That result put him seven points clear heading into round two.
Bezzecchi is widely considered the main threat to Marc Marquez this year, but Acosta’s performance in Buriram — where he overtook the world champion several times — showed that he shouldn’t be overlooked.
Pedro Acosta says winning the 2026 MotoGP title is not his ‘target’
Photo by Qian Jun/MB Media/Getty ImagesSpeaking in Thursday’s press conference, Acosta said he felt out of place at the top of the championship. He finished sixth in his rookie season and improved to fourth last year.
The KTM rider’s main goal this season is to reduce the mistakes that affected him last year. While he only had five retirements, it wasn’t until the Brno Sprint in July that he earned his first podium.
After Acosta’s win in Thailand, Marquez made a light-hearted comment that the lead wouldn’t last long. However, Goiania’s unpredictable weather and low grip could give Acosta another chance to shine.
Inside Ducati, there are doubts about whether Marquez will be at his best this weekend. The track layout isn’t ideal for him, and he’s still not fully recovered from a shoulder injury suffered last autumn.
“[Leading the championship is] cool, but at the end, I know that it’s maybe not my place to be,” Acosta said. “You can imagine it’s super nice to see yourself at the top of the MotoGP world standings”.
“But it’s not our target now. I have to keep working like I’m doing. I was really happy about the race in Thailand, because I was not committing mistakes that I normally made last year, but we have to keep working like this.”
Michelin may have given Pedro Acosta an edge over Marc Marquez
The track in Brazil has been dealing with the aftermath of flooding, and although the heat has helped dry things out, there’s still plenty of dirt left on the surface from the rain.
Acosta expects that to pose challenges for everyone but feels the grip will improve once the track is cleared up. It’s worth noting that this will be the first time since 1989 that premier-class bikes have raced at Goiania.
Michelin is bringing its reinforced tyre casing to this race, which hasn’t suited Ducati in the past – something they struggled with again in Thailand. If conditions stay dry, it could be another weekend where Aprilia and KTM have an edge.
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