Brad Binder ready for what could be make-or-break MotoGP year

Brad Binder hopes to get more joy out of his RC16 in 2026. Picture: Red Bull KTM Brad Binder is confident he can get back to winning ways when the MotoGP season starts in Thailand this weekend. The Red Bull KTM man’s seventh premier class season could turn out to be his most important yet as he tries to prolong his MotoGP career.

His KTM contract runs out at the end of the season, and he is desperate to secure a ride post-2026. The first thing he needs to do to achieve his goal is find the podium again. The 2016 Moto3 champion has not finished in the top three since the opening round of 2024, while the last of his two premier class wins came back in 2021.

Last year, he could only manage one fourth place as he limped to 11th in the title race, his worst finish since his rookie season in 2020. “No matter what people say, at the end of the day, it’s down to results. As a sportsman, your happiness depends on results.

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The better you do, the better everything is,” Binder said during a virtual call arranged by Red Bull. “The goal is always to win. When I go to bed at night, that is what I dream of.

I’m trying my best to find a way back to the top, and fingers crossed that it happens sooner rather than later.” The KTM added that achieving better qualifying times will go a long way in improving his results. Last year, he struggled making it to Q2, which meant he finished both the sprint and main races of most rounds in 13th or lower on the grid. “I need to find extra speed to be faster on a once-off lap and qualify better.

That will help me tremendously, as I was qualifying so far back. Even when I did make a comeback, I couldn’t go as far forward as I needed to,” said Binder. “That is priority number one.

Then we need to find a bit more comfort on the bike. It seems that we have done that already, as something seems to be clicking.”

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