Neil Hodgson claims Pedro Acosta repeated Valentino Rossi’s ‘dark arts’ at the Thai Grand Prix.

The Spaniard certainly did not waste time putting the speculation to bed Acosta won the Buriram Sprint race The opening weekend of the 2026 MotoGP season.

Of course, a victory in a shorter format cannot be placed on the same level as a Grand Prix victory, but now the young Murcian has a taste of success within his reach. KTM A new bike can take a lot of confidence in future races.

That being said, Acosta’s talent is clearly far greater than his KTM counterparts. Neil Hodgson He has gone so far as to compare the 21-year-old to the greatest of all time. Valentino Rossi.

Who was the rider of the day for the Thai Grand Prix? 🏍️

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Neil Hodgson thinks Pedro Acosta has now replicated Valentino Rossi’s ‘dark racing’

Season TNT Sports Live coverage Grand Prix of ThailandHodgson couldn’t help but admire Acosta’s racing after mounting one. Mark Marquez Hunting for stage positions.

The KTM star started sixth on the grid for the Grand Prix and wasted no time drawing through the riders in front of him before Marquez joined Jorge Martin for a battle for P3.

“Textbook, close, brutal racing,” said Hodgson after Acosta was finally able to get his pace on his rival.

He continued: “After the Sepang test, the comment from Pedro Acosta was: ‘I feel more of the front of the bike, no crash, I feel the limit.’

“And really, since then, he hasn’t crashed yet this year, it’s Pedro Acosta. I’m not trying to tempt fate, but that’s like the dark art of racing, I feel the front tire, or, I feel where the limit is.”

“When you look at Pedro Acosta yesterday, you can clearly see that he can do it. People ask, ‘What makes Valentino Rossi so good?’ They used to ask me. And I say ‘the feel of the front wheel’. He can live right on the edge; It can do 25 rounds at the limit.

Pedro Acosta leads the championship for the first time after P2 in Thailand. Will he be a true contender this season?

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Acosta’s impressive performance in Thailand comes after that. Enea Bastianini urged KTM to look beyond giving priority to the Spaniard for the 2026 MotoGP campaign.

However, it is clear why the Austrian developer has full confidence in the 21-year-old. Brad Binder Closest to Acosta at the checkered flag was the KTM, with the South African securing a strong P7 finish in the season opener.

Binder congratulated Acosta for his efforts after the Sprint race, and he seems to have gained some confidence in the RC16 compared to his efforts last year.

BastianiniOn the other hand, he finished outside the top 10 in P12, nearly 20 seconds behind Acosta in the final category.

His Tech3 teammate, Maverick VinalesOn the 16th, he ended up taking the checkered flag outside the points.

Jorge learns Lorenzo has a bet with Acosta’s agent. On the finishing position of their respective riders in the MotoGP standings. The three-time premier class winner will have to pay if things continue the way they started.