MotoGP - Binder: "The situation at KTM is not catastrophic"

KTM has had a difficult start to the season. The two races at Losail, a circuit that does not favor the strengths of the RC16 , were disappointing and the team struggled again at Portimao, where it was heavily penalized by the removal of the symmetrical hard front tire that Miguel Oliveira used to dominate. the 2020 edition.

In all three races this year, Brad Binder has been the only KTM rider to finish in the top ten in the race, finishing eighth at the Doha GP and fifth at the Portugal GP. The South African acknowledges that KTM has some difficulties, especially at the front of the bike, but believes that the situation is not so bad and it is possible to improve.

“We need something up front for sure,” Binder said. “I think we can improve there. It is clear that the first three races have not gone as we expected and it has been very difficult for us. But the important thing is to keep working and I think we will achieve it. There are many resources at KTM and I am sure they will find a solution, so I hope it will be sooner rather than later, but the situation is not catastrophic anyway.”

The front tire upgrade helped Binder to fifth at Portimao, but the changes were relatively small and focused on the front end.

“It hasn’t been crazy, we’ve made it a bit more stable, that’s the only change. It’s very similar to what we were using. You have to accept what you have and work with it.”

“The worrying thing is that you have to be very careful with the front end, because you can’t brake hard and launch the bike into the corner, or it will go away,” he added. “So at the moment the situation is a bit difficult, we are working to adapt the bike so that everything works well and we have found something for the race, but we still have to make progress on the fastest lap.

KTM’s difficulties in making the front tire work mean that they cannot exploit braking and corner entry, two of their strong points. In order not to lose them, Binder believes that the solution may lie more in the driving than in a technical change.

“We have to experiment to see what we can find, but at the same time it’s very important to make sure we keep our advantage under braking and on corner entry, because that’s where we seem to be strong compared to others. So it’s important I think it’s something that maybe we have to accept and try to find another way to do it, like being a little bit softer on the bike.”

Binder could not stay close to the leaders in Portimao, but his fifth place was an encouraging result in a weekend marked by difficulties for all KTMs.

“I’m happy with the progress we made in the race. It was really good to get a top 5 finish, especially after such a tough weekend. Overall we worked a lot over the weekend and the race pace was quite high. “It was frustrating to see the podium within my grasp and not be able to get it, but I think fifth was a good result. We’ll keep working and hopefully we can progress in Jerez.”