Valentino Rossi has downplayed rumors that surfaced over the MotoGP weekend in Catalunya that his VR46 Racing team are targeting Pedro Acosta for an unprecedented leap from Moto3 to MotoGP.
>Have you ever wondered what technology from MotoGP is trickling down onto racing bikes, click here and you will see
While Rossi is busy pondering whether or not to hang up his helmet at the end of the season as a driver, plans for his VR46 Racing setup are picking up speed for its inaugural season in the top division next year.
With official confirmation pending that a deal has been made to operate Aramco-sponsored Ducati machines, attention is turning to which riders will promote the pair of Desmos.
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Among the contestants who showed up in Spain was 17-year-old Acosta, the rookie sensation who has gained a pretty big advantage in the Moto3 World Championship.
>Have you ever wondered what technology from MotoGP is trickling down onto racing bikes, click here and you will see
The young Spaniard’s name recently made its way into the mouths of the great and the good in MotoGP after taking a trio of consecutive victories in his second GP race. Although the results have not been as brilliant in the last three races, he remains 39 points ahead of the standings as Moto3 shows its usual unpredictability of bundled races and sprints to the finish line.
As it stands, Acosta is competing in Moto3 under the umbrella of KTM through the Ajo Motorsport team and the Austrian company will no doubt be interested in capturing the teenager for him to follow a route created by Brad Binder, Miguel Oliveira and recently confirmed MotoGP graduate Remy Gardner.
However, there has been talk of handling all of this with a move to MotoGP for 2022, an option KTM is unlikely to match given an already established hierarchy that includes the formidable Raul Fernandez.
This shows whether VR46 could be an opportunity with its young tendency to drive. Although he sees Acosta as the sport’s new “superhero”, he won’t be tied to VR46 anytime soon.
“I’ve read about it, but it’s not true,” he said over the weekend. “We are sure to be happy. Pedro Acosta is the new superhero, but no. I think we will continue our project with our Riders Academy riders.
Who will ride a VR46 Ducati in the 2022 MotoGP season?
In fact, VR46 could be tempted if Acosta had come with an Italian passport. Regardless of the question marks about whether such a quick move to MotoGP would be a good thing, Acosta won’t be racing with the VR46 because he’s simply Spaniard.
VR46 was founded by Rossi to develop the skills of young Italian racing drivers with the express intention of diluting the “Spanish armada” of talent filtered out of their well-established GP racing feeder programs.
While there are examples of riders jumping from Moto3 / 125 to MotoGP, a rider like Acosta would be unprecedented in MotoGP for 2022. Using the example of the last rider to switch from Moto3 to MotoGP – Jack Miller – he had completed three Moto3 seasons before receiving the call from Honda, and even then it was a CRT-specified LCR machine. Acosta, on the other hand, is only seven races in his GP career and has just turned 17.
The VR46 program was a resounding success for Rossi that went beyond his own racing achievements, with Franco Morbidelli, Pecco Bagnaia and Marini all completing MotoGP. These words from Rossi seem to suggest a seat is being warmed up for VR46’s “next” Marco Bezzecchi, currently third in the Moto2 standings.
As for the other seat, Sky VR46-sponsored Avintia Ducati rider – Rossi’s brother – Luca Marini is expected to keep one of the spots, even if the Italian rookie is not enjoying a stellar MotoGP first season in which he largely retired from his teammate Enea Bastianini.