It was Brad Binder with a more carnivorous smile than usual who presented himself at the preliminary press conference at the launch of hostilities for this French Grand Prix. And for good reason: he comes out of an intimidating performance given on the Jerez justice of the peace with an orange KTM which gave the red Ducati a hard time. The South African feels it well, the RC16 has passed a milestone. The top 5 which was its first ambition is now small fry. Confirming its new ambitions at Le Mans this weekend would be a strong signal for the rest of the championship…
« I can't wait to get started here " began Brad Binder by taking up residence in Sarthe. “ The two podiums in Jerez gave me a lot of confidence not only in me but also in the machine. A few tracks this season haven't been good for us in the past, but somehow they've already been much better this year, so I expect to be stronger here than previous seasons ».
He adds : " the bike runs great and I really have good confidence with it. Le Mans is a track that I love but we never managed to have a good weekend together and yes, This is priority number 1 on my list.. I want to change that, try to come away here with a solid weekend overall. Let's keep our heads down and keep fighting and see what we can do when it's time to perform ».
Brad Binder: “ it's definitely the craziest race of the season as far as fans and spectators are concerned, I always like it here »
With such a state of mind, we can only think about the title race…” It’s clear that we were stronger than previous seasons, regardless of the paths we took. The team has done an unreal job to bring us this new machine which is much more competitive. It gives me so much more, like clarity, calm, peace of mind when you show up to a Grand Prix knowing that, if you do a good job, you can challenge for wins and podiums… Whereas, in the past, it was okay if we could crack the top five, it was the most we could get ».
« It's exciting for me yes, I really want to take things one race at a time and do my best to bring home as many points as possible. It's exciting, I'm looking forward to it and let's see what tomorrow brings » finished the teammate Jack Miller who is no less enthusiastic and rave about his KTM RC16. Certainly, but, at Le Mans, the third place of Pol Espargaro in 2020 is the best result in MotoGP from the Austrian manufacturer to this day. Brad Binder may have won at Circuit Bugatti in 2016 en route to the Moto3 title, but he finished no higher than eighth in the premier category.
Brad Binder ends with this special atmosphere that we find at the French Grand Prix: “ the number of fans is incredible. We sleep in the camper and already this evening the engines roar all night... I don't think the engines will arrive until Sunday, it's impossible. It's crazy. This is definitely the craziest race of the season as far as fans and spectators are concerned. I still like it here and I would like to leave with good results ". What did the disaster say? Wilco Zeelenberg Already ?
