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In the evening Pedro Acosta looked like a child who had spent a day in Toyland. It's what a rider feels on his debut in MotoGP because no matter how much it can prepare you, it always manages to surprise you. The Moto2 world champion broke the ice and, above all, had a lot of fun. “Today I just tried to understand what a MotoGP bike was, to discover the sensations it gave me - he said - I can't say I was fast at the start, I had a lot of buttons to push and sometimes I found myself taking corners with the bike lowered - he laughed - I think I kept a solid pace and it was important to understand how the electronics, the brakes, the tyres worked, to get a general idea. We are building the foundation for the times to come naturally.”
Until now, nothing has been taken for granted.
“I wasn't so much surprised by the bike itself, but by the amount of people I had around me - he continued - In Moto2 I had 5 people in the garage, today 20 or 30 who listened to what I said when I got off the bike and who were trying to help me. The bike goes fast, it goes very fast, and you have to use the lowering device, press buttons, do the turns."
What was the hardest thing?
“Everything - admitted Pedro - The main point is the preparation before entering the track, for example you must warm up the brakes before leaving the pit lane and it's not easy. The same goes for the tyres, you must be progressive because as soon as they cool down the whole bike moves. You must prepare to turn, to brake, one wrong body movement is enough to lose stability. The team was very open with me, if I wanted to change something about the program I just had to say so. In the end, they are the ones who know how to work, who have experience, how to make things easy. The truth is that the only easy thing in MotoGP is when you're on the straight!”.
Not even the first crash was lacking.
“I crashed because I'm a big head and I wanted to enter the corner anyway – was his mea culpa - The bike moved a bit; I saw that the other riders were very fast in the corners and I asked myself why I couldn't do it too. It was a combination of things, I made mistakes, but it's better to do it now, at a time when I'm learning. Now I know. I'm happy because it was a good first day, I kept a constant pace, and I think this will help me to have a clear idea of what MotoGP is like. Now I will try to improve my physique and understand what I need to be faster."
The only negative aspect is that he will have to wait two months before getting back on his GasGas during the tests in Malaysia. “I didn't touch the bike; we'll start doing that in Sepang. Valencia is not a very physical circuit, but I think this bike wants to be ridden with the legs rather than the arms. Today I had to understand how it works, there are 25 thousand lights on the dashboard."
Alongside him he had two experts like Kallio and Pedrosa, KTM's test riders.
“Mika helped me, he explained to me how to use the lowering device, I was doing it at the wrong times, and how to keep my arms when braking. I spoke with Dani at lunch, he gave me some general advice, the kind that a beginner needs and helped me not to make mistakes at the beginning" explained Acosta.
The last comment was on Marquez's 4th time. “I had no doubts that Marc would be fast on the Ducati. We know who he is and what he has done in the last 12 years” he concluded.
