After turbulent weeks at KTM, MotoGP talent Pedro Acosta traveled to the manufacturer’s headquarters to get a first-hand look at the situation.
The headlines surrounding the financial crisis have not left MotoGP talent Pedro Acosta untouched. Although the Spaniard recently emphasized that the MotoGP project of the brand is not affected by the situation, a certain sense of unease was also felt in the Acosta camp.
However, a visit to the company headquarters in Austria has now provided some relief, according to his manager Albert Valera. Acosta traveled to Mattighofen last Tuesday to better understand the impact of KTM’s difficult financial situation on the company’s MotoGP program.
According to reports, up to 800 KTM employees are to be laid off by the end of the year. In addition, the remaining employees will not be paid their December salaries, although KTM had previously promised to pay them on time.
The company filed for bankruptcy a few weeks ago due to billions of dollars in debt and is currently undergoing extensive restructuring.
Amid this difficult situation, Acosta and his manager met with KTM Factory Racing executives, including Pit Beirer, who is a key figure in KTM’s motorsport program, in Mattighofen, Austria. They assured the Spaniard that the problems in KTM’s commercial division would not affect the motorsport department.
“Pedro and I have had the opportunity to travel to Austria to see the real situation of KTM’s MotoGP project for ourselves,” manager Valera told Motorsport.com Spain,
“Despite the difficult situation of the company, the mood is positive. We were repeatedly assured that racing is the essence of KTM and that they continue to work with the clear goal of winning the title. Pedro is committed to the project and feels relieved and more confident after the meeting.”
Valera had previously expressed his concerns about the situation at KTM and the lack of communication in Motorsport.com’s “Por Orejas” podcast. “In May, we signed a contract with a winning project, with a company that was making millions in profits and had a clear message: they were strong enough to take on Ducati,” he said at the time.
“But now that is no longer the case. Within six months, everything has suddenly changed, and we wonder what happened. It would be absurd to deny the obvious problems.” After the on-site visit by the manager and driver, the most pressing doubts now appear to have been dispelled for the time being.