One of the most promising riders to come through the ranks in recent years, Acosta will make his highly-anticipated premier class debut next month at the age of just 19.
The Spaniard had already turned heads with his performances in the junior classes, winning the Moto3 title in his rookie season in 2021 and taking just two years to repeat that success in Moto2.
Interview: Why Pedro Acosta is shaping up to be the rookie MotoGP needs
But just as impressive was his speed in last weekend’s pre-season test at Sepang on the KTM RC16, as he ended up less than a tenth behind factory team rider Brad Binder in ninth place.
Although he did get three additional days of running at the Malaysian venue thanks to his status as a rookie, many of his rivals feel Acosta is already beginning to show speed and maturity well beyond his age.
Six-time MotoGP champion Marquez hailed the Spaniard as a “super talent” after closely following his progress at Sepang and believes he will be capable of contending for the title “sooner or later”.
“He will be super fast during the season,” Marquez said of Acosta. “Already [Fabio] Quartararo [was fast when he made his MotoGP debut in 2019].
“Now the guys that arrive in MotoGP are super fast. Pecco [Bagnaia] when he arrived here in the first pre-season test [in 2019], he was leading. He was the fastest in one day.
"Pedro was super fast during the test. He crashed, but it's the way to learn.
Source: Autosport