MotoGP news is often as hectic as the machines involved but, sometimes, certain journalists take the time to address subjects in more depth.
This is the case of this interview with Pete Beirer by Ivo Schützbach for the site Speedweek. com.
The head of KTM's competition department enlightens us not only on the human, technical and financial investment made by the Austrian firm in its MotoGP program, but also on the reasons for its future collaboration with the French Tech3 team of Hervé Poncharal, as well as on certain decision-making mechanisms and certain observations regarding the current situation of KTM on the motorcycle market.
In 2019, having four MotoGPs instead of two, how much does that increase your investment?
“We had to learn the hard way how much effort it takes to manage a MotoGP team. You need a lot of material and for that you need suitable storage space. Engines and motorcycles are complex, consisting of around 3000 individual parts. These must be designed and made from the right material. At this level, a second team almost doubles the bet. It's not enough to build four more motorcycles and give them to Tech3. We need a lot more staff to be a good partner for Tech3. The staff at the factory, but also the staff who will work at Tech3. It’s not just Tech3 that’s lucky to work with KTM. We are quite happy to have a strong team like Tech3.
We built our MotoGP team from scratch. Of course there is a lot of experience at the factory and in the paddock, but this is a new team. Tech3 is a team that has naturally developed a lot of experience over the years. Just look at the results they have achieved each year with young and inexperienced drivers. This requires a lot of knowledge within a team, so we will benefit greatly from it. I look forward to working with them. And it's strange: we already work for them, but Tech3 cannot work for us. But if we don't work now, we won't be able to give them anything. Next season starts on Tuesday in Valencia. By then we must have all the equipment ready.”
Who chooses Tech3 drivers?
“We’ll decide on that together. I don't want to hire a driver to ride for Tech3 if Hervé doesn't want him. But we are in a good position, the Red Bull Rookies Cup experts are sitting at our table, with Aki Ajo for our Moto2 project, Hervé Poncharal and Mike Leitner. There are people there who know a lot about the competition. We decide together who our future pilots will be. Our dream is for our future MotoGP riders to compete in all categories with KTM. This is what makes us successful in off-road sport. We already link very young pilots to our company and ensure that they feel in good hands. They should not feel bound by a contract, we want to be a good partner for them at the different stages of their career. When it comes to contracts, they sign them because they want to. And not because they are offered incredibly high contracts. This is why it is very important to have partners like Hervé who openly engage in discussions. We need to make sure we get the best results for everyone involved in all categories.”
Will you need more than one permanent test pilot with an additional team?
“I don’t think that’s the case. We already work with different drivers and only reserve drivers for testing from time to time. We will continue to do so. If we put together a full test team, it would be an even bigger effort. This requires a truck and 15 or 17 people who also need a workplace and offices at the factory. We are not going to race with four drivers and put in a test team, that’s clear.”
Will you have to devote more time to MotoGP racing in the future? Your roots are in motocross…
“I am responsible for all sporting activities at KTM, my job is to have the right people on board. I don’t need to be the smartest at the table, I need to hire the right experts. This is why our projects work. When we implement a new project, it does not mean that we reduce our commitment elsewhere. We got involved in Motocross, Supercross and Rallying, now we do MotoGP. We have kept the experts and budgets in the above categories, and have not reduced anything because of MotoGP.
But sometimes my heart bleeds. When I go to three MotoGP races in a row, Jeffrey Herlings calls me and asks me if I don't like motocross riders anymore. Time is a limiting factor, but I try to keep a balance.”
Is there not a danger that you will lose yourself with all these projects? Compared to Honda, KTM is a small company.
“It’s certainly a heavy burden on our business. We are growing in all disciplines as the company grows. When we won the US Supercross title, we grew. However, any growth has always been proportional to the size of the company. Today the company is twice as big as during the 2008 crisis and we are ready for any project. We finance the races through major sponsors, but also through sales in the respective segments. The money we spend on motocross is also earned on motocross. The same is true in the United States and in road races.
For more than three years, we have sold more on-road machines than off-road machines. A lot of people don't know this, they think we're an all-terrain company. It not only depends on the size of the business, but also on your growth. As the company has grown, so has our motorsport business.”
