Acosta turns 20

Victories only a matter of time for prodigy

Will prodigy Pedro Acosta even give himself his first gold sprint medal today on his 20th birthday in Barcelona?(Bild: AFP)

Prodigy Pedro Acosta celebrates his 20th birthday today. Is a success in the sprint or tomorrow's race the candle on the cake?

Although there have only been three MotoGP winners so far this season in sprints and races - world championship leader Jorge Martín, Pecco Bagnaia and Maverick Viñales - there are plenty of contenders for victory this weekend in Barcelona. Aleix Espargaró smashed the track record at the Circuit de Catalunya with his Aprilia in practice yesterday, while Marc Márquez and Pedro Acosta's first triumph in 2024 seems only a matter of time anyway.

Old master or prodigy?
But who will be first: the old champion on the Gresini Ducati or the prodigy on the GasGas KTM? Who is celebrating his 20th birthday today and, with a triumph tomorrow, would replace MM93 as the youngest race winner in MotoGP history.

"It's another new track for me," says the Spaniard, who is excited - but so far he has ridden as if he has always been on the 300 hp rockets. Even his first retirement at Le Mans did nothing to dent his confidence, as he raced into Q2 in third place. While Márquez still has to go through the bone mill of Q1 before today's sprint (15, Servus TV live).