Pedro Acosta’s Pole Position Jinx: A ‘Personal Mistake’ at Motegi Extends Crash Streak

Acosta's "Personal Error" in Motegi MotoGP Sprint as First Pole Jinx Persists

"It's almost customary now to crash after achieving my first pole position."

Pedro Acosta described his fall while leading the MotoGP Japanese Grand Prix sprint as "a personal error," marking the third such incident for the Tech3 racer.

On Saturday morning, the 20-year-old racer clinched his inaugural pole position in MotoGP. This achievement came after Marc Marquez's leading time in Q2 was annulled at the session's conclusion.

This was Acosta's first time securing a grand prix pole position since the Austrian Moto2 event in 2023. However, during the Motegi sprint, he was unable to turn this advantage into a victory, as he fell while leading on the ninth lap out of twelve.

This marks the third instance in his grand prix career that Acosta has experienced a crash following his achievement of a first pole position. He encountered similar situations in Moto3 during the 2021 Valencia Grand Prix and in Moto2 at the 2022 French Grand Prix.

"It was a personal error," he mentioned to Motogp.com.

"I went slightly off track at Turn 6, which caused me to take a sharper angle and go a bit wide at Turn 7."

"In any racing class, it seems to be a recurring theme for me to crash after earning my first pole position. Tomorrow marks the second time I'm starting from the top spot on the grid, and generally, the second attempts tend to go more smoothly."

Acosta had increased his advantage to more than six-tenths of a second before he experienced a crash during the sprint. He mentioned that he did not feel any pressure leading up to the fall.

"We were not traveling at high speeds, so I felt pretty secure," he mentioned.

"I made a foolish error, but ultimately, I have to acknowledge it was my responsibility."

"I apologize to KTM, the entire team, and everyone involved with this project because today's mistake was mine."

"However, this season, we are bonding more than we anticipated. Although it was difficult to come to terms with, it's important for us to keep moving forward in this direction."

Francesco Bagnaia, who secured victory in the sprint following Acosta's crash, identified the Spaniard as a contender for Sunday's grand prix. He had already made this observation on Friday after assessing Acosta's long-distance speed.

When questioned on the matter, Acosta responded, "We are hopeful. At the very least, we should remain composed. The race will be challenging. Additionally, the selection of tires poses a concern, as hardly anyone completed numerous laps using the medium compound. However, we'll have to wait and see."

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