When the first off-season tests ended in Malaysia, no one gave much thought to KTM's chances of making it this year. And yet, after only two Grands Prix, the Austrian brand leads the manufacturers' classification in MotoGP for the first time in its history with a second place acquired by Brad Binder in Qatar and a victory taken by Miguel Oliveira in the rain of the Grand Prix of 'Indonesia. The South African is also the highest ranked official driver in the provisional driver hierarchy, just two points behind leader Enea Bastianini. Within the Austrian brand, we don't brag, since we are pleasantly surprised by this journey. But what is taken is no longer to be taken.
How far will KTM's state of grace go in this 2022 MotoGP season that is decidedly resistant to all predictions? We don't know and we await with interest what the next stage in Argentina will bring. But the results are there and it initially satisfies the new arrival Francesco Guidotti : " Miguel Oliveira was really excited since Friday morning, he pushed in all conditions: he deserved it, like everyone else » he said back from Mandalika. “ From the people around him to those at the factory who design and develop the bike ". But the Italian tries not to get excited: “ perhaps it is not yet the time to plan for the future. We know that the first races are always special: we tackle one Grand Prix at a time, for the rest we wait at least half the season. What is certain is that I could not have hoped for a better start! ».
Pete Beirer is in unison by first congratulating its two pilots for their Indonesian performance. On Brad Binder, he recalls the circumstances which brought him to eighth place: “ we saw during the race that Brad's performance was impaired by the faulty trim control device ", said the director of KTM Motorsport, in an interview with speedweek. " We are happy that he stayed on the track and finally recovered some important places against many rivals who had all overtaken him ».
Public chat Olive tree, he adds : " Miguel clearly showed what he was made of. In such difficult conditions, it's not the bike that makes the difference. It's the pilot. We now have a solid package. We have a super powerful engine to start with, and you have to combine it with electronics. It’s like clockwork working together. And you also need a driver to handle all this ».
KTM: “we are still on thin ice, we all need to keep our feet on the ground"
He finishes : " we will not change the objectives, but we will see how the season develops week by week. MotoGP is a lot of fun for us at the moment, because we spend the GP weekend differently. We're not dependent on Brad Binder's outburst on Sunday. We're actually doing well in every practice session, so the weekend is building on a stronger foundation. This leads to better results in qualifying and racing. But we are still on thin ice. We all need to keep our feet on the ground, focus and move forward ».
« After five years, we understood the MotoGP project even better. We learned a lot during the winter. Now we have to continue working like this. If you have two drivers in the top five, you have a very good chance of one getting on the podium. This remains our goal. Finishing in the top five in MotoGP is an incredible achievement. If we continue like this, I am sure we will achieve good results ».
