12th-placed South African has never finished the premier class outside the top 11.
Red Bull KTM has vowed to throw its weight behind Brad Binder for the second part of the MotoGP season.
KTM’s headquarters in Austria hosts the 13th out of 22 rounds this weekend following the season’s traditional four-week summer break.
Languishing in a lowly 12th place in the championship on 68 points, Binder’s sixth premier class season has been his worst. He has not stood on the podium in a year and a half and has not win a main race since his famous victory at the Red Bull Ring in 2021.
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Beier backs Brad Binder
“So we clearly know we have to help Brad. Yes, we’re not at all satisfied with the performances we’ve achieved with him. He’s having a hard time making this package work,” Pit Beirer, KTM motorsport director, said according to motorsport.com.
After KTM made a terrible start to the season, Binder’s factory team-mate Pedro Acosta found pace on the RC16 along with Tech3 riders Maverick Vinales and Enea Bastianini. Acosta, who is seventh in the title race on 124 points, is the highest-placed KTM rider.
Although Binder has done well with solid top 10 performances, he has struggled to find the outright pace to stay with the front runners. Beier is confident the team can find the right setup for Binder to be more competitive.
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Confidence key
The lowest the South African has finished in the title is 11th in the his rookie season, after which he finished sixth three times and fourth once.
“You can’t compete in this class without confidence,” he said. “Then you make decisions about the bike that perhaps aren’t right for a particular rider at all, and that’s exactly what’s happening with Brad. He just can’t find the feeling he needs to express his potential.”
Marc Marques is expected to set the pace again in Austria. The Ducati man, who has 381 points, leads the title race from his brother Alex by 120 points and it has become a case of when rather than if he will earn his seventh MotoGP title this year.
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Martinator looks to strike
World champion Jorge Martin will look to make amends in the last 10 outings of 2025 after being plagued by injuries since moving to Aprilia. Marco Bezzecchi, who is fourth in the championship on 156 points and the highest-placed non-Ducati rider, has shown this season that Aprilia can take the fight to the Marquez brother and Pecco Bagnaia, who is third on 213 points.
The sprint race starts at 3pm on Saturday and the main race at 2pm on Sunday.
