Brad Binder on his way to a third-place finish in the main race of the British MotoGP at Silverstone on Sunday. Picture: Getty Images
Red Bull KTM lauded Brad Binder for his third-place finish in the main race of the British MotoGP on Sunday.
Binder delivered a brilliant ride, fighting his way from 10th on the grid to his seventh MotoGP career podium in tricky circumstances at Silverstone. The riders needed all their skills to negotiate conditions varying from dry to wet.
Binder’s third place came under threat from former team-mate Miguel Oliveira late in the race, but he defended like a man possessed. In the end, he was just 0.680 seconds behind race winner Aleix Espargaro and 0.465 seconds behind runner-up Francesco Bagnaia.
“A good weekend, especially for Brad’s podium,” Red Bull KTM team manager Francesco Guidotti told KTM’s website.
“[We showed] some good speed and good signs in various conditions at this Grand Prix. Brad fought until the end of the race and we are happy with the third place. It’s important to see our progression.”
Binder made a strong statement with his podium place after being demoted from first place at the previous race at TT Assen. It was also a good comeback after a disappointing ninth place in Saturday sprint race.
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“We missed the podium in Assen but we made it here and now we are looking forward to the home race with a lot of confidence,” added Guidotti.
The 16 points Binder earned at Silverstone saw him move up to 131 points while staying in fourth place in the MotoGP title race. While he marginally closed the gap to Jorge Martin (173) and Marco Bezzecchi (167), Bagnaia (214) is now further adrift.
“Really tricky and very sketchy at the end,” Binder told the KTM website.
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“This track is so big and covers so much space that it was wet in some sectors and dry in others: it was hard to understand how much I could push.
“Days like this are awesome for a podium finish just because of how difficult it was.”
By finishing in 15th place in the Moto2 race, Brad Binder’s younger brother Darryn Binder was in the points again at Silverstone. The Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP ride remains 19th in the title race on 13 points.
The next round is in two weeks’ time at the Red Bull Ring in Austria. Brad Binder recorded a famous win at KTM’s home circuit in 2021 when he stayed out on slick tyres when it started raining and all the other riders pitted for wet weather rubber.
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