Pol Espargaró was left without a place in MotoGP for 2024, after KTM had to release one of their riders to promote Pedro Acosta – as they had five riders for four bikes, between Red Bull KTM and GasGas Tech3.
The #44 was asked if he would have liked to have known about his release earlier, in order to try to find alternatives in the paddock. In response, he confirmed, but acknowledged that the situation was complicated: ‘Well, I would have liked to, but the situation wasn’t good for me. I was out in the first half of the year, which means it wasn’t easy for the team to choose an option, and it’s true that they didn’t want to let me go after the injury I had, and they wanted to test me, all of this. But it is what it is‘.
According to Espargaró, KTM also had a complicated contractual situation, but regarding Acosta, he believes he will be a good rider: ‘I believe that the manufacturer also had this problem with the contract program. They didn’t do it well, they know it and we talked about it for a long time, and they know it. It’s a kind of responsibility for the manufacturer, also looking to the future – to let some young talents like Pedro enter the Pierer Mobility Group. I think he will be a good rider for the manufacturer in the future‘.
