Pedro Acosta is keeping his predictions modest amid a swarm of high expectations as he prepares to make his long awaited MotoGP World Championship bow at the 2024 opener in Qatar.

The Spaniard - competing in only his fourth season of grand prix racing after wrapping up the 2021 Moto3 and 2023 Moto2 titles - will line-up with Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing Tech 3 as the only rookie in the field.

Acosta’s premier class debut comes three years after he made a huge splash on the international stage by finishing second in his maiden Moto3 race in Qatar before making history a week later at the same Lusail International Circuit by becoming the first rider to win a grand prix having started from the pit-lane.

While few anticipate him to take MotoGP by such a storm on the satellite KTM RC16, Acosta’s competitiveness during pre-season testing has identified him as an outside contender for a top five finish.

For now, Acosta simply wants to get his MotoGP adventure underway after a long winter of build-up and anticipation.

"I am excited to start a season that will be very special for me. First-year in MotoGP with a team that I have connected with very well from the beginning. 

‘The test in Qatar has helped us a lot to approach the first race of the season, so we have a good feeling. Our goal is to keep adapting and to understand little by little how the bike works. Come on, let's get started!”

Augusto Fernandez hoping to make it count when it matters

On the other side of the garage, Augusto Fernandez is hoping to put a difficult pre-season build-up behind him and brings his ‘A game’ to the season opener when it matters.

After a long winter and all the pre-season testing done, I am super happy to be finally heading to our first race week of the year, and go back to ‘real’ racing! The winter tests did not go as well as we would have hoped, as I struggled a lot. 

“However, I have faith in all the work we have achieved, we understand the new bike, and we know where we have to improve to be competitive again. 

“Recovering the same feeling as towards the end of 2023 is our goal for this first round, hopefully we can be at a similar level, and build from there.”