Fernandez: “Pedrosa as fast as factory riders, but easier to understand why”

The lone MotoGP rookie in 2023 has adapted very quickly to the premier class, after winning last season’s Moto2 title.

But whereas Brad Binder and Jack Miller are two of the top riders in the series, and thus can help steer a young rider in the right direction due to their data, Fernandez admits he’s sometimes confused as to how they achieve the performances we’ve seen at times this season.

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Instead, KTM test rider Pedrosa has made things much easier for Fernandez, who credited the former Repsol Honda rider with being the easiest to understand when it comes to riding style and finding speed.  

"To be honest, it helped me the most when we had Dani on the track," Fernandez told DAZN.

"His riding style is very fine and the telemetry data shows how fast he is. As we saw at Jerez, he's very fast - just as fast as the factory riders or even faster, but in a way that's easier to understand."

KTM have been the second fastest manufacturer behind Ducati on many occasions this season, while Binder is only one of two non-Ducati riders to win a race. 

For Fernandez, promising results in the opening few rounds were cemented by a stunning P4 finish at Le Mans, which remains his best result of the year to date. 

Although Pedrosa has competed in just one round so far, the Spaniard claimed a double top ten in Jerez after showing similar speed to the likes of Binder and Miller. 

Speaking further about Pedrosa’s riding style, Fernandez added: "Dani rides constantly, it's easier to read his data. You might lose a second, but you understand why. 

"With Binder, you might see that he's much faster in a corner, but you don't understand how he takes it."