Tech3 MotoGP team boss Herve Poncharal admits he felt “a lot of pressure on myself♈” to provide “special support” to Pedro Acosta 𒆙for his rookie season in 2024.

From the off in his grand prix career in 2021, Acosta marked himself out as onღe of the paddock’s hottest prospects.

Winning the Moto3 title in his rookie year, Acosta won races in his first Moto2 season before taking the championship in the class in 2023 ahead of his graduation to MotoGP wit🧔h Tech3 and KTM.

Acosta reached the podium for the first time in just his second race and has amassed three grand prix rostrums so far while sitting sixth in the standingꦕs.

All of this has earned Acosta a move to the fact♉ory KTM squad alongside Brad B෴inder in 2025.

While expectations were high for Acosta’s debut year in MotoGP, Poncharal admits this brought with it a lot of pressure as he knew the Spaniard “was not going to come to be doing a rookie season like e🍰veryone expects”.

“I had a lot of pressure on myself, because I knew that young and that special rider was going to ask for special support, special treatment,” Poncharal told the🌄 M🉐otoGP podcast.

“And he was not going to co𝓡me to be doing 𓃲a rookie season like everyone expects what a rookie season is - you’re here to learn and that’s it.

“Pedro wants to learn, but in 15 min🧸🧸utes. The rest [of the time] he wants to perform.

“So, I didn’t kn🥀ow if I would be at the level, and this is also an exciting thing because you are enteringꦜ the unknown.

“And I like to be in the unknown; deja vu is not interesting. We had a great day in Valencia followingꦅ the last race of 2023 and I was quite happy with our team💜, with the way we welcomed him, the way we gave him support.

“And I could see from the feedback that not only di🌱d he like the bike, he li🌊ked the class, but he was happy also to work with our crew.

“From that moment we moved to the Sepang test, everything was fantastic. There was never any cloud. The ♈sky was always fully clear.”

Poncharal adds th🦂at Ac😼osta has been “close to perfection for a rookie”, especially given the quality of the MotoGP field in 2024.

“I think his se༒ason is 8.5, 9. It’s very close to perfec♉tion for a rookie,” he said.

“We were talking about the Aragon weekend with two podiums and he told me ‘I want💦 more’ꦕ.

“I’m not so sure he would giv🧔e himself 8.5,♚ but I would say 8.5, 9/10.

“He’s close to the best you can do as a rookie.

“Especially at the moment the MotoGP class level is so, so high and close and competitive. To do what he is doing with the level we have in the MotoGP class is fant🔯a🌄stic.”