Binder back to speed with fierce podium attempt in Catalan MotoGP™ Sprint

MotoGP 2024 - Round 06 of 21, Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya – Qualification and Sprint


Binder suffers a Sprint DNF as one of three fallers from the lead of the 12-lap Catalan dash. Brad was straight into P1 contention thanks to clocking the 4th best lap in Q2
Miller qualifies just 0.5 of a second from Pole Position and then manages his race across the low grip asphalt to take three points for P7
Red Bull KTM Ajo sit on the front rows in Moto3™ and Moto2™ thanks to Jose Antonio Rueda with the KTM RC4 and Celestino Vietti’s superb P3 recovery

 
Back to Barcelona! Red Bull KTM Factory Racing entered round six of the current Grand Prix campaign with memories of past success at the popular Mediterranean venue. The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is a challenging mix of diverse corners with a 4.4km trajectory traditionally low on grip and therefore high on tire wear. The track was covered by warm but windy and cloudy skies.
 
Brad Binder was immediately among the fastest riders through FP1 on Friday morning and then weathered two falls at Turn 2 to still log a lap to be P2 at the end of the day. Jack Miller was not far adrift and also moved straight into Q2. On Saturday morning the pace was well under the old lap record. The South African was rapid to qualify 4th and just 0.14 from Pole Position. Jack maintained his positive form. He took 9th on the grid but was only half a second from P1!


 
The sixth Sprint of the year began Saturday afternoon and lasted for 12 rapid-fire laps. Brad was in the mix from the first meters and had another strong start with the KTM RC16. He moved to the front when Raul Fernandez crashed but then lost the front end tipping into Turn 5, a tumble also suffered by the world champion a few minutes later. Jack had his work cut out deeper in the top ten after being punted off line in Turn 4 on the first lap but completed the distance with a hard-earned 7th.
 
A double length distance lies in store at 14.00 CEST on Sunday for the Gran Premi de Catalunya main event.
 
Jack Miller, 9th in qualification, 7th in the Sprint: “Q2 wasn’t bad and the bike is working really well. I got a bit hung up with the yellow flag at the end. I got a decent start in the Sprint but suffered with the lack of grip and trying to work out where it was best. I was trying to hang in there with the boys and make that grip margin better because it feels like no two sessions are the same. The last sector punished us a bit and it’s so hard to accelerate; you just have to keep momentum. A couple of points on the board but considering how the weekend has gone so far we want a lot more than that.”
 
Brad Binder, 4th in qualification, DNF in the Sprint: “At the end of the day I tried my best. I felt good, felt fast and thought my best would be enough. Unfortunately, I lost the front in Turn 5, which is easy to do at this track and I don’t feel like I did much wrong to be honest. I was trying to ride clean because I was leading the race. I’ve been really fast this weekend and we’ll try again tomorrow.”
 
Francesco Guidotti, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager: “A very good weekend until Brad’s crash in the Sprint race. No complaint. We know this circuit is very tricky and there have been a lot of crashes in that place: we were one of them! We know the speed is there and we can be confident for tomorrow. After 2nd place on Friday and a good qualifying we really cannot complain. We just need to work on a few small details to finalize the results and with Brad we are really confident. Jack also did a great job to go through to Q2 and the third row was still solid. He had contact on the first lap but came back to get some points. A good race and we have hopes for him tomorrow with a better start.”
 
Grand Prix of Catalunya photographs can be found HERE
 
Results Qualifying MotoGP Grand Prix of Catalunya
 
1. Aleix Espargaro (ESP) Aprilia 1:38.190
2. Francesco Bagnaia (ITA) Ducati +0.031
3. Raul Fernandez (ESP) Aprilia +0.071
4. Brad Binder (RSA) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +0.144
5. Pedro Acosta (ESP) Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 +0.179
9. Jack Miller (AUS) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +0.573
19. Augusto Fernandez (ESP) Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 +1.39.120 (Q1)
 
Results MotoGP Sprint Grand Prix of Catalunya
 
1. Aleix Espargaro (ESP) Aprilia 20:01.478
2. Marc Marquez (ESP) Ducati +0.892
3. Pedro Acosta (ESP) Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 +1.169
7. Jack Miller (AUS) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +8.084
17. Augusto Fernandez (ESP) Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 +25.262
DNF. Brad Binder (RSA) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
 



KTM GP Academy
 
Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Jose Antonio Rueda carried decent memories of his podium appearance in 2023 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Cataluyna, in what was his maiden Moto3 season. The young Spaniard has shown consistent podium pace since the start of 2024 but had illness and health issues that counted him out of the chase for trophies. He began the turnaround in Barcelona with a fine P3 in Moto3 qualification to settle on the front row for 18 laps on Sunday. Teammate Xabi Zurutuza could not pop out of Q1 and will start the race from 23rd.


 
In Moto2 Celestino Vietti was back on the throttle after recovering sufficiently from surgery to his left collarbone but the Italian had to enter Q1 along with rookie teammate Deniz Öncü. It was Vietti who was higher placed after the Saturday run-down with a bright charge to P3 for the front row, and Öncü was 26th for 21 laps of action on Sunday.
 
Results Qualifying Moto3 Grand Prix of Catalunya
 
1. Ivan Ortola (ESP) KTM 1:46.749
2. Collin Veijer (NED) Husqvarna +0.019
3. Jose Antonio Rueda (ESP), Red Bull KTM Ajo +0.262
6. David Alonso (COL) CFMOTO +0.550
9. Daniel Holgado (ESP) GASGAS +0.800
15. Joel Esteban (ESP) CFMOTO +1.290
16. Jacob Roulstone (AUS) GASGAS +1.305
21. Tatsuki Suzuki (JPN) Husqvarna 1:48.752 (Q1)
23. Xabi Zurutuza (ESP) Red Bull KTM Ajo 1:48.876 (Q1)
 
Results Qualifying Moto2 Grand Prix of Catalunya
 
1. Sergio Garcia (ESP) 1:41.894
2. Fermin Aldeguer (ESP) +0.240
3. Celestino Vietti (ITA) Red Bull KTM Ajo +0.288
11. Jake Dixon (GBR) CFMOTO +0.564
12. Senna Agius (AUS) Husqvarna IntactGP +0.729
13. Izan Guevara (ESP) CFMOTO +0.803
18. Darryn Binder (RSA) Husqvarna IntactGP +1.454
26. Deniz Öncü (TUR) Red Bull KTM Ajo 1:43.481 (Q1)
 
PRESS CONTACT
 
Sarah Kinrade
PR Manager MotoGP
M: +43 676 7654200
E: Sarah.Kinrade@ktm.com