Pedro Acosta is making his debut in MotoGP this year, and in just his second Grand Prix, he secured his first podium. Despite experiencing a dip in performance – natural in a season with much to learn and on a KTM that isn’t the most competitive bike in the lineup – he continues to be highly regarded in the paddock.

Kevin Schwantz spoke to the Paddock Pass Podcast and discussed the trajectory of the Red Bull GasGas Tech3 rookie: ‘What’s even better is to have a new kid on the block, like Pedro Acosta out there mixing it up with those guys at the front […]. I think a real tip of the hat to Hervé Poncharal, Pedro Acosta, everybody involved at that team, because Pedro is, I think Pedro is on his game and it’s just a matter of time before he wins a race’.

The former rider then talked about the extensive calendar: ‘This is a long season, with races on Saturday and on Sunday, so, what? Fourty or something total races this year? The opportunity to make a mistake, and on Saturday you’re only giving away a few points, but on Sunday you’re giving away the full chunk of points’.

In Schwantz’s view, Acosta needs to ensure that he doesn’t make mistakes to capitalize on any slip-ups from his opponents: ‘I see everybody having at least one bad weekend this year, and if Pedro just can kind of stay out there, keep his nose clean and try and get a result every weekend – whether it’s P2, P3 up on the podium, whether it’s winning a race or maybe top five or top ten – you just got to take what you can get each weekend. Because the bikes are all so close; I mean, if it weren’t for the six Japanese bikes off the back, qualifying is less than a second typically’.

Kevin Schwantz reveals for what race in particular he is more known, and what is the best audience in motorcycling

Kevin Schwantz is a true motorcycling icon, with the American being a true legend above all in the Suzuki universe, the manufacturer with which he competed in 500cc for a decade. With so many years in the category and despite visiting many circuits, there is one particular crowd that has remained in his memory: the Italian one, as well as one race in particular.

Now 59, Schwantz didn’t hide his admiration for the transalpine public: ‘I’ve always enjoyed seeing all the fans on the circuit. The Italians are some of the most appreciative. I think they all realise that every lap I did, every lap I did, I was giving 100%’ he said as quoted by Motosan.

Regarding his own career, Schwantz knows that, when he looks back at what he’s done on the track, there’s one race in particular that has stuck in the memory of his fans: ’90 per cent of the time, when someone says: «I remember when you did…», they’ll be talking about Hockenheim in ’91