After a very positive start to the season in Thailand, it was back to square one for Brad Binder and Red Bull KTM at the Brazil MotoGP at the weekend.
Binder failed to score a point in Goiânia, while his team-mate Pedro Acosta finished the main race in seventh place. Acosta slipped from first to third and Binder from sixth to ninth in the premier class title race.
Marco Bezzecchi made it two from two on Sunday – and four in a row – to show that Aprilia is taking the fight to Ducati this season. His team-mate Jorge Martin finished second to make it a one-two for the Italian manufacturer. Bezzecchi (56) and Martin (45) leads the championship ahead of Acosta (42).
Short and sweet for Brad Binder
Following a 22-year hiatus, MotoGP made quite an eventful return to Brazil at the Ayrton Senna International Circuit. After torrential rain had flooded the circuit early in the week, the main race was reduced from 31 to 23 laps due to track degradation.
Binder could only qualify in 21st place and missed out on the points in the sprint race by finishing 15th. He made a steady start on Sunday, but crashed out on the fourth lap.
“I started fast and passed a few guys at the beginning but then went into Turn 1, locked the front wheel and that was about it. I would definitely have enjoyed a few more laps,” Binder told the KTM website.
Straight to the point
KTM will have little time to find more pace as the next race is this weekend at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas. Acosta says the long straight at COTA could hurt the team like it did in Brazil.
“We were not so fast on the straight today. Austin will also be a tough one with these two long straights but now we must work on it,” the Spaniard said on Sunday.
Moto3 rider Ruché Moodley again missed out on the points in Brazil and will be eager to open his account in Austin.
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