Pol Espargaró lost his place in MotoGP for 2024 after KTM had to release one of their riders to promote Pedro Acosta. They had five riders for four bikes, split between Red Bull KTM and GasGas Tech3.
The rider was asked if he would have liked to have known about his release earlier to try to find alternatives within the paddock. In his response, he confirmed that he would have preferred that but acknowledged that the situation was complicated: ‘Well, I would like, but the situation was not good for me. I’ve been away for the first half of the year, which means that also for the manufacturer was not easy to take an option and for sure they didn’t want to put me out after the injury I had, and they wanted to test me, and all this. But it is what it is’.
In Espargaró’s opinion, KTM also had a complicated contractual situation, but regarding Acosta, he believes that he will be a good rider: ‘I believe the manufacturer had this trouble with the contracts program. They didn’t make it well, they know and we have talked about this for quite a long time and they know this. It’s a kind of responsability to the manufacturer also looking in the future – to let some young talents like Pedro coming into the Pierer Mobility Group. I think it’s gonna be a good rider for the manufacturer in the future’.