Acosta's podium follows an unusual operation on KTM's engines

Pedro Acosta finished second at Aragon, his fourth podium of the season, after following Marc Marquez for much of the race. He says keeping the winner’s pace to the end would have destroyed his tyres. That management limit explains why his pressure did not become a final attack, despite a KTM fast enough to beat the Aprilias and the other Ducatis.

The result followed an unusual intervention on KTM’s engines. With rival manufacturers’ approval and under supervision, KTM opened seven sealed units to replace components linked to its reliability problems. Four belonged to Acosta’s rotation. The exact parts changed have not been publicly confirmed.

KTM had limited revs or power at some circuits after several incidents. Acosta had already used six of his eight permitted engines, with two removed from his rotation. Returning repaired units reduces the risk of reaching the final races with too few options.

The Aragon podium does not prove that the engine work directly caused Acosta’s pace. It does show the RC16 can fight at the front when reliability and tyre management remain under control. KTM now has to establish whether that level can be repeated without restoring the restrictions that had limited its rider.