RiderTua.com – MotoGP rookie Pedro Acosta includes correct handling of the KTM RC16’s hydraulic clutch at Tech3 team on his list of future improvements as part of an improved ‘starting phase’. Acosta won’t let himself be lulled by flattery. Despite his legendary debut in the MotoGP class, where he has finished his first race with the fastest lap on the track and finished his second race on the podium, the 19-year-old Spaniard has repeatedly stressed that he still has a lot of learning to do.
An example of Acosta’s learning process was the ‘start’ in Portimao on the Portugal weekend. He got off to a strong start in the main race on Sunday, ultimately finishing third. The Tech3 GasGas rider only lost the seventh position he achieved in qualifying for a few seconds amidst the chaos of the first corner. After half a lap he was back in seventh place. His forward momentum began shortly after when he overtook Jack Miller, Brad Binder, Marc Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia.
Pedro Acosta: ‘Start Phase’ Important Things to Learn Next in MotoGP
The day before in the sprint race, Acosta didn’t get off to a good start. In this case, the rookie who started from P7 then recovered from the first lap in eleventh position, after only being in twelfth position at the first corner. Right at the start of the race, Acosta experienced a slight wheelie and was unable to accelerate as desired.
“The start was the problem. I lost 2.5 seconds in one move. In the end, five seconds I finished behind Maverick Vinales,” Acosta said after the sprint race and spoke about the fact that he had a strange problem with his clutch at the start.
Unlike the Moto2 Kalex motorbike that Acosta rode last year to win the Moto2 class world title, the KTM RC16 in the MotoGP class has a hydraulic clutch. He wants to get the perfect feel for this, including tweaking settings if necessary, which is something Acosta and the Tech3 team will have to continue to work on, he said.
After the season-opening series in Qatar, the MotoGP rookie had requested another change to his RC16, namely changing the position of the lever to activate the rear ride height device. And the learning process will continue at other race weekends this season, mostly at tracks Acosta has never ridden on a MotoGP bike. “I still need more time with the bike, but we are on the right track,” he said.
