Pedro Acosta, KTM rider
/ @KTM_Racing
The MotoGP French Grand Prix delivered several memorable battles, both for podium positions and further back in the pack. Pedro Acosta and Fabio Di Giannantonio produced one of those fights, ending with the Italian crossing the finish line ahead of the Spaniard.
Acosta had a solid weekend and started fifth on the Le Mans grid, right next to Di Giannantonio. The VR46 rider arrived after a crash in the sprint that left him pointless and at the back of the grid for Sunday. The start of the main race also didn’t go well for the Italian, forcing him to fight back through the field, while Acosta experienced the opposite.
The KTM man began strongly but gradually lost positions as the race progressed. After running third for most of the race, he was overtaken by Jorge Martin and Ai Ogura with ten laps to go.
Acosta leading a group at Le Mans
/ AFP7 via Europa Press
At that stage, past the halfway point, the two riders found themselves battling for fourth place. By the closing laps, the Aprilias of Martin, Bezzecchi, and Ogura were out of reach, leaving Acosta to focus on maximizing points. The Spaniard led into the final lap, with Di Giannantonio right behind, setting up an attack that succeeded at the last corner.
Di Giannantonio got ahead on the straight and turned his head twice to look back, a gesture that angered Acosta.
**Wrong Strategy**
“I don’t know if that was the maximum I had today,” Acosta explained, admitting that “I thought Di Giannantonio was closer than he actually was, and I tried to defend too much.” The Spanish rider believed fourth place was possible but acknowledged his strategy “backfired.” Regarding the podium, he accepted they “clearly weren’t in the fight for it” given the pace set by Aprilia. “It was frightening, especially Martin and Ogura coming from behind. We have to be realistic about where we are and be happy because it’s my best result at Le Mans since I’ve been in MotoGP,” he assessed.
As for Di Giannantonio’s gesture, Acosta was clearly upset. “I insist, I thought he was closer, but I’ll keep that in mind for next time. Nobody overtakes me while looking at me,” he stated, promising revenge. “We’ll see each other at the next race,” he added.
