The image of Brad Binder standing on the top step of the MotoGP podium, smiling to the sound of the South African anthem is a historic moment.
Never before has a MotoGP rider from South Africa won a race in the MotoGP class, but Binder on his Red Bull KTM broke the drought at the recent Czech GP at the Masaryk Circuit in Brno on 9 August. Just two days before his 25th birthday on 11 August, he secured himself an early birthday present.
Binder was in superb form, taking the win in a time of 41:38.764 after starting in the seventh position. He passed Franco Morbidelli (Yamaha) with nine laps to go with a sweeping move on the inside. Johann Zarco (Ducati) finished the race in third.
“I did everything as softly and calmly as possible because the rear tyre was quite dead. Every time I tried to do something aggressive, I had some crazy pumping. When I got into first place, I was thinking ‘gosh, I’m leading a MotoGP race’. When I saw the gap come up, I was even more shocked. In the final three laps, even with no one behind me, I blocked the lines just in case,” stated Binder after the race.
Binder’s hero and Moto GP legend, Valentino “The Doctor” Rossi, finished the race in fifth – a surreal moment for Binder who used to cheer for Rossi from the couch back in SA when he was a kid.
Binder was born in Potchefstroom but grew up in Carletonville and Krugersdorp for most of his life before taking on the MotoGP dream with his first race in the Moto 3 category in 2011.
Success at major motorsport events has been few and far between for South Africans in the past, especially on a motorcycle.
Jon Ekerold was the last South African to win a race on a 350 cc motorcycle in 1983 before Binder broke the drought at the Spanish Grand Prix in the Moto 3 class in 2016. That was the beginning of a ground-breaking year for the Potchefstroom born ace who went on to win the 2016 Moto 3 title on his KTM.
Binder won seven races in that season and racked up 14 podiums. The following season, he signed for KTM in the Moto 2 series again. He initially struggled to find his feet before finishing the season with three consecutive podiums. In 2018 and 2019, he finished in third and second place overall, before landing a spot in the premier MotoGP class with KTM for 2020. Binder started his career on the MotoGP circuit in 2011.
While he has enjoyed a steady climb to the big leagues, no one expected him to win his first MotoGP race in only his third start for KTM. KTM is still one of the mid-table teams competing against established powerhouses like Ducati, Yamaha and Honda.
“It is a dream come true. Hard to believe we are Grand Prix winners. Thank you to everyone for all the support over the years. The feeling of standing on top of the podium in MotoGP was unreal. I’m forever grateful to everyone who helped and supported me along the way,” he stated on his official Instagram page.
Binder will soak up the victory celebration this week before his attention shifts to the next Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring in Austria on Sunday 16 August.
