The Argentine Grand Prix was a real rodeo for Brad Binder (KTM Factory): a 7th place finish at the end of a race full of heart, but far from his dreams of glory. The top KTM rider (13 points overall, 7th), the South African finished ahead of Pedro Acosta (9th, also 13 points), but frustration reigned. "7th is not the plan!" he said, dejected. Between a disastrous sprint and a spinning bike, Binder is sounding the alarm before Austin (March 28-30). A look back at a mixed weekend.
The race weekend in Argentina was marked by ups and downs for Brad Binder. Despite a solid performance that allowed him to score points, the driver KTM expressed his frustration after a 7th place that he considered insufficient.
Binder started the weekend on a positive note by qualifying directly for the Q2, securing an 11th place on the grid. However, the race Sprint Saturday's race was cut short after a collision with Franco Morbidelli from the first lap, ending his race prematurely.
Sunday, during the Grand Prix, Binder drove a consistent race to finish 7th, becoming the top driver KTM of the test. His teammate Peter Acosta finished 9th after an intense battle with Joan mir et Ai Ogura.
Despite this result, Binder did not hide his frustration. 7th place is definitely not what we wanted to achieve! " he said. The South African driver explained that his lack of confidence before the Grand Prix was due to a race Sprint shortened and to a technical problem during the warm-up Sunday morning.
Brad Binder: “ I tried to ride consistently, as I knew we would have problems with the rear tire later in the race »
« I only managed one lap in the warm-up, that's why I felt a little rusty at the start of the Grand Prix. But I was able to develop a good feeling with the bikeI gave it my all and tried to ride consistently, as I knew we would have problems with the rear tire later in the race. »
As for the other pilots KTM, Binder encountered difficulties with rear tire wear. When the rear tire wears out, our lap times become much slower. When that happened, I just tried to make the most of it. I made the best of it, so I must still be happy! »
A performance far from that of 2022, where Binder had won the sprint race in ArgentinaThis time, a place on the podium was out of reach.
Despite difficulties, Binder remains optimistic for the rest of the season. I hope we have an easier time at the next race in Austin and can improve. We know very well what we need to improve. The window in which our bike works properly is too narrow.. When there is little grip, we have huge problems. Hopefully our engineers in Munderfing will find a solution and develop an update to allow us to solve the problem.. »
The next round of the MotoGP championship will take place at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, from March 28 to 30. Binder and KTM hope to regain their competitiveness and get closer to the leaders.
MotoGP, Argentina J3: ranking
