What a MotoGP™ race we just had at the Chang International Circuit for the PT Grand Prix of Thailand! As the rain joined the party in Buriram just in time for race day, things got spicier for the main race of the premier class, as rain showers from lunch time left a damp track for Red Bull GASGAS Tech3’s Pedro Acosta and Augusto Fernandez. After four DNFs in a row, rookie Acosta showed us what he was made of with an incredible performance that saw him clinch his 5th Sunday podium with a third place! Augusto Fernandez was on his way to his potential best result of the season, but sadly crashed in the final laps.

Ready for another shot from the 7th place on the grid under light drops of rain, Pedro Acosta launched himself well, taking 5th after the first turns to exit lap 1 behind Fabio Quartararo who had also found his way to the front. Ahead, Jorge Martin, Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez had taken the lead. In the next lap, Acosta went wide in turn 3 as he tried a move on Quartararo, and that cost him some time on his rivals. He was now in 7th 0.2 secs from Franco Morbidelli after two laps. A Jack Miller putting in the hot laps in his favorite conditions overtook the rookie the next lap, but the Quartararo-Morbidelli incident gave Pedro his P7 back. He then moved up to 6th after Morbidelli completed his long lap penalty, a position in which he settled for a while. While the front three were all apart from each other, Brad Binder led a Pierer Mobility trio in 4th, followed by Miller and Acosta close behind. Miller made a move on his teammate. The pressure was growing, Acosta made a small mistake that almost cost him a crash, but luckily he remained on his wheels to avoid DNF number 5 in a row. That gave Enea Bastianini the opportunity to move past in the first sector of lap 9, but shortly after that the Ducati rider made a mistake, giving back to Pedro his P6, who was now one second away from the KTM Factory Racing duo, while Maverick Vinales was two seconds behind. Mistakes made at the front got Pedro in the top 5, while he was progressively closing the gap on his rivals ahead. With eleven laps to go, he was 0.8 seconds from Binder, and it was three laps later that the battle for 4th became more of a reality, with the young shark now in the back wheel of his future teammate. Shark attack alert! Acosta made a brilliant move on the inside of Binder in the third sector, to progress to 4th. 4 laps then remained to defend that P4, but why settle with 4th when you are Pedro Acosta? The #31 still had the energy to go after Miller after he had made the gap on Binder, and in no time he found himself close to the back wheel of the Australian. After an exciting battle for 3rd between these two, Acosta finally got the final say to provisionally sit on the podium, a position he kept until the checkered flag. That is podium number 5 on a Sunday in MotoGP™ for our rookie, his first one in the wet earned with amazing battles and overtakes!

Augusto Fernandez has always been good in the wet conditions, and today was a good opportunity for the Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 rider to bounce back from a difficult overseas tour. As lights went out, Augusto lost one position to 17th but gained it back to exit lap 1 in his original grid position, behind Alex Marquez who had started from the pitlane following his sighting lap-crash. Looking confident in the early laps, the Spaniard passed through the Gresini rider, and he was up to P14 after two laps, and then he gained two more in the next laps. With four laps done, he was up in 12th, with Alex Marquez coming back strong behind. Augusto settled in that position for a while, until a few mistakes at the front moved him up to 10th behind Aleix Espargaro. Fernandez attacked the Aprilia rider to progress to P9, with next ahead Fabio Di Giannantonio. Marc Marquez’ crash on lap 14 meant one more position gained, with Augusto now in 8th. Aleix Espargaro had not said his final word though, and he started pressuring the #37 a bit more, waiting for his opportunity close behind. Eventually, Augusto was overtaken on lap 22. A small mistake then cost him a few positions. As he tried to recover the lost time, he crashed two laps later. A great shame for Fernandez who was potentially on his way to a top 10.

Next on for the Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 team, the Malaysian Grand Prix next week, the final leg of the overseas tour, and the penultimate round of an exciting 2024 MotoGP™ World Championship!