Brad Binder and KTM bank on home ground advantage in Austria

Few people believed their eyes when Brad Binder stormed to his brilliant MotoGP win while staying out on slick tyres when it started raining at the Red Bull Ring in 2021.

Now few people believe their ears when told that three years later, that epic ride in Austria was the Red Bull KTM man’s last MotoGP win. Despite being on the podium nine times since that day and winning two sprint races, the top step has eluded him every Sunday since.

Binder believes KTM’s home track in Spielberg could be just what the Austrian outfit needs to turn its season around this weekend. After starting the season with two runners-up places in Qatar, the RC16 machine has not held well against the high-flying Ducatis and even the Aprilias at various stages.

Brad Binder chomping at the bit

To add insult to injury, clutch issues forced Binder to retire on the first lap of the British Grand Prix two weeks ago. This left his stuck in seventh place in the world championship standings on 114 points, all of 119 points drift of leader Jorge Martin.

“I’m really excited to get back on track. It’s a track I’ve always had good memories at,” Binder said of the 4.35km layout during a MotoGP press conference on Thursday.

“We’ve always been able to rise to the occasion here … even if it has been a tough season up until now. In the past it’s been a turning point for us and I hope it’s the same this time around.”

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Binder, who turned 29 last weekend, firmly believes the RC16 has what it takes to keep up with the title challengers this weekend. He was in the mix at the Red Bull Ring last year, but finished second behind world champion Pecco Bagnaia.

Red Bull Ring ‘suits’ RC16

“The last few events haven’t gone our way at well and we expect to do a lot better,” Binder said.

“We always seem to find form at this Grand Prix every year. It suits our bike really well. I think the late braking, the stopping and going really helps us.

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Martin (241) leads Bagnaia (238) by only three points in the title race. They are followed by another Ducati pair, Enea Bastianini (192) and Marc Marquez (179), with Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales (130) in fifth place the first non-Ducati rider in the standings.

Just ahead of Binder in sixth is KTM satellite team rider Pedro Acosta (122).

The 14-lap sprint race starts at 3pm on Saturday and the 28-lap main race at 2pm on Sunday.