Pedro Acosta
Spanish motorcycle racer (born 2004)
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Pedro Acosta Sánchez (born 25 May 2004) is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle racer, competing in MotoGP for the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team.[1] Acosta won the second Moto3 race he competed in, the 2021 Doha motorcycle Grand Prix, after starting from the pitlane. In the same season, he won the 2021 Moto3 World Championship to become the first rookie champion since Loris Capirossi in 1990,[2] and the second youngest ever champion, just one day older than Capirossi was at the time of winning. In 2023, Acosta won the Moto2 world championship with 2 races to go. Acosta is also a champion of the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, having won the title in 2020.
| Pedro Acosta | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Acosta at the 2025 Italian Grand Prix | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Spanish | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 25 May 2004 Mazarrón, Spain | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current team | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bike number | 37 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Career
Early career
Acosta participated in various national competitions, winning in 2017 in the PreMoto3 category. In 2018 he entered the Junior Moto3 World Championship. In 2019 he also raced in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, finishing second, winning three races. He finished as champion the following year, winning six races in total, all six coming consecutively at the first six races of the season.[3]
Moto3 World Championship
In 2021, Acosta made his debut racing in Moto3 class with the Red Bull KTM Ajo team. In his first race in Qatar, he finished in second place, becoming one of just a handful of riders to score a podium on their Grand Prix debut. On 4 April 2021, he won the Doha Motorcycle Grand Prix starting from pitlane, becoming the first rider in the history of Moto3 to accomplish this feat.[4][5] Acosta would later win the next two races in Portugal and Spain, becoming the first rider in Grand Prix history to get on the podium in all of his first four races. He would win three more races during the season, in Germany, Styria, and Algarve, becoming champion in Algarve, when Darryn Binder crashed into Acosta's main title rival Dennis Foggia. He won the championship by 43 points, and became the first rookie champion of the Moto3 class since 1990, when Loris Capirossi won the 125cc title. Acosta was only one day older (17 years, 166 days) than Capirossi (17 years, 165 days) when they won their respective titles.
Moto2 World Championship
Red Bull KTM Ajo (2022–2023)
Acosta was promoted to Moto2 with the same team in 2022, joining compatriot Augusto Fernández who also moved from Marc VDS Racing Team.[6] He recorded his first Moto2 win during the Italian Grand Prix in Mugello.[7] After missing two rounds due to a broken femur sustained in a training accident,[8] he won another race in Aragón.[9] Acosta won the 2023 Moto2 World Championship.
MotoGP World Championship
Red Bull GasGas Tech3 (2024)
Acosta was promoted to MotoGP for 2024 with Red Bull GasGas Tech3.[10] He impressed in Qatar as he finished eighth in the sprint and ninth in the race, where he was as high as fourth, but slowed due to tyre degradation.[11][12] In Portimao, he achieved a podium in the main race, having overtaken experienced riders Brad Binder, Marc Márquez (both in turn 1), and Francesco Bagnaia (in turn 3).[13][14] At the Circuit of the Americas, he fought Marquez again, as well as Jorge Martin only to finish fourth in the sprint, but in the main race he led a race for the first time and made moves that would have seen either a rider go wide on the exit of the corner or crash, he finished second behind Maverick Viñales.[15][16] After a long period without podium, he manage to finish third of the sprint race and the main race of the Aragon GP.[17][18] Acosta also scored his maiden premier class pole position at the Japanese Grand Prix. He finished sixth overall in his first MotoGP season, only two points behind factory rider Brad Binder.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing (2025–)
Ahead of the Italian Grand Prix in Mugello, it was announced that Acosta had signed a multi-year deal with Red Bull KTM Factory Racing for the 2025 season.[19] He scored five podiums to rank fourth in the championship.
Acosta remained with the factory KTM team in 2026. He won the opening sprint race of the season in Thailand, and finished second in the main race, becoming the first KTM rider ever to lead the MotoGP World Championship.
Career statistics
Career highlights
- 2017: 1st, FIM CEV PreMoto3 Championship
European Talent Cup
Races by year
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)
FIM CEV Moto3 Junior World Championship
Races by year
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup
Races by year
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Grand Prix motorcycle racing
By season
| Season | Class | Motorcycle | Team | Race | Win | Podium | Pole | FLap | Pts | Plcd | WCh |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Moto3 | KTM | Red Bull KTM Ajo | 18 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 259 | 1st | 1 |
| 2022 | Moto2 | Kalex | Red Bull KTM Ajo | 18 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 177 | 5th | – |
| 2023 | Moto2 | Kalex | Red Bull KTM Ajo | 20 | 7 | 14 | 3 | 8 | 332.5 | 1st | 1 |
| 2024 | MotoGP | KTM | Red Bull GasGas Tech3 | 19 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 215 | 6th | – |
| 2025 | MotoGP | KTM | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 22 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 307 | 4th | – |
| 2026 | MotoGP | KTM | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 10* | 0* | 3* | 1* | 0* | 133* | 7th* | – |
| Total | 107 | 16 | 40 | 7 | 13 | 1423.5 | 2 | ||||
By class
| Class | Seasons | 1st GP | 1st Pod | 1st Win | Race | Win | Podiums | Pole | FLap | Pts | WChmp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moto3 | 2021 | 2021 Qatar | 2021 Qatar | 2021 Doha | 18 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 259 | 1 |
| Moto2 | 2022–2023 | 2022 Qatar | 2022 Italy | 2022 Italy | 38 | 10 | 19 | 4 | 9 | 509.5 | 1 |
| MotoGP | 2024–present | 2024 Qatar | 2024 Portugal | 51 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 3 | 655 | – | |
| Total | 2021–present | 107 | 16 | 40 | 7 | 13 | 1423.5 | 2 | |||
Races by year
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Class | Bike | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | Pos | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Moto3 | KTM | QAT 2 |
DOH 1 |
POR 1 |
SPA 1 |
FRA 8 |
ITA 8 |
CAT 7 |
GER 1 |
NED 4 |
STY 1 |
AUT 4 |
GBR 11 |
ARA Ret |
RSM 7 |
AME 8 |
EMI 3 |
ALR 1 |
VAL Ret |
1st | 259 | ||||
| 2022 | Moto2 | Kalex | QAT 12 |
INA 9 |
ARG 7 |
AME Ret |
POR Ret |
SPA 20 |
FRA Ret |
ITA 1 |
CAT 6 |
GER 2 |
NED | GBR DNS |
AUT 4 |
RSM 6 |
ARA 1 |
JPN 7 |
THA 16 |
AUS 2 |
MAL Ret |
VAL 1 |
5th | 177 | ||
| 2023 | Moto2 | Kalex | POR 1 |
ARG 12 |
AME 1 |
SPA 2 |
FRA Ret |
ITA 1 |
GER 1 |
NED 3 |
GBR 3 |
AUT 2 |
CAT 6 |
RSM 1 |
IND 1 |
JPN 3 |
INA 1 |
AUS 9‡ |
THA 2 |
MAL 2 |
QAT 8 |
VAL 12 |
1st | 332.5 | ||
| 2024 | MotoGP | KTM | QAT 98 |
POR 37 |
AME 24 |
SPA 102 |
FRA Ret6 |
CAT 133 |
ITA 53 |
NED Ret |
GER 7 |
GBR 95 |
AUT 13 |
ARA 33 |
RSM 176 |
EMI Ret5 |
INA 26 |
JPN Ret |
AUS DNS |
THA 3 |
MAL 59 |
SLD 10 |
6th | 215 | ||
| 2025 | MotoGP | KTM | THA 196 |
ARG 89 |
AME Ret7 |
QAT 8 |
SPA 7 |
FRA 4 |
GBR 68 |
ARA 45 |
ITA 8 |
NED 49 |
GER Ret9 |
CZE 32 |
AUT 43 |
HUN 2 |
CAT 44 |
RSM Ret5 |
JPN 173 |
INA 2 |
AUS 53 |
MAL 23 |
POR 32 |
VAL 42 |
4th | 307 |
| 2026 | MotoGP | KTM | THA 21 |
BRA 79 |
USA 38 |
SPA 10 |
FRA 54 |
CAT Ret2 |
ITA 69 |
HUN 22 |
CZE Ret |
NED Ret9 |
GER | GBR | ARA | RSM | AUT | JPN | INA | AUS | MAL | QAT | POR | VAL | 7th* | 133* |
‡ Half points awarded as less than half of the race distance (but at least three full laps) was completed.
* Season still in progress.
Records
As of 7 June 2026, Acosta holds the following records:
MotoGP
- Youngest rider to have set a fastest lap aged 19 years and 290 days
- Youngest rider to score a podium finish aged 19 years and 304 days
- Youngest-ever rider to win a MotoGP Sprint aged 21 years and 279 days
- First KTM rider ever to lead the World Championship
- Most career podium finishes without a win: 13
Moto2
- Youngest Moto2 world champion aged 19 years and 172 days (2023)
- Youngest race winner aged 18 years and 4 days
- Most podiums in a single season: 14 (2023, shared with Marc Márquez, Esteve Rabat, and Johann Zarco)
- Most fastest laps in a single season: 8 (2023, shared with Franco Morbidelli)
Moto3
- Youngest Moto3 world champion aged 17 years and 166 days (2021)
