Brad Binder in sync with his RC16: “A much better day than last time!”

Fourteenth place in the first free practice session, then a big step forward in qualifying: with a seventh-place finish on Friday in Spielberg, Brad Binder secured direct entry into Q2 on Saturday. This means the South African has already secured a better starting position on Friday than he did at the last MotoGP weekend in Misano. There, the 31-year-old had started only from 19th on the grid in both the Sprint and Sunday races – as the slowest rider on a KTM. He continued to move up the field in both races, but his best finishes were 14th and 11th:

“I was incredibly disappointed after Misano. It was like driving into a brick wall. That’s why my first priority here on Friday was to get out on track, to find consistency in my lap times and get into my rhythm,” explained Binder. “If that had been enough for tenth place, that would have been good. And if it had only been enough for fifteenth place, that would have been fine too.”

However, KTM’s first MotoGP winner is unlikely to languish that far back in the field this weekend. One reason for this is his bike: “Friday was a much better day than I’ve had time and again recently, and I’m incredibly happy to have gone straight through to Q2,” said a relieved Binder. “Our bike is working much better here; I felt comfortable right from the first laps this morning. And because we’re using a different tyre compound on the rear here, I don’t have the problems with the front tyre that I usually have. That gives me confidence.”

Binder: “It’s more fun to be chasing a few fractions of a second than a whole second.”

Confidence in his RC16, which the former Moto3 World Champion intends to use as a basis for the rest of the weekend: “This gives us much better opportunities to prepare during the second free practice session on Saturday. It’s more fun to be chasing a few fractions of a second than a whole second.” Tenths of a second usually make the difference to several grid positions in MotoGP qualifying. It’s potential that Binder certainly recognises: “I believe we can still find a lot more. Our greatest strength lies in braking, and our corner exit is better here than ever before.” The KTM factory rider was also looking two steps ahead: “And if we manage a decent qualifying session, we’ll need to focus on getting through the races well.”

Before points are up for grabs for the first time this weekend in Saturday’s sprint race, Brad Binder lies 13th in the World Championship standings. With 83 points, he trails his team-mate Enea Bastianini by nine points.

Topic of the week

Spanish Grand Prix at the new Madring: track – hit or miss?

The people of Madrid had set their sights high for their city’s first Formula 1 World Championship race since 1981. But have the high expectations for the new Madring mixed-circuit track really been met?

Read More

TV Program

Tomorrow

Red Bull Ring: International Livestream

MotoGP World Championship

19.09.2026 - 08:35