Key KTM weakness pinpointed - but Brad Binder tipped to fight for title

Brad Binder has been tipped for fight the Ducatis for the MotoGP championship, despite his KTM lagging behind in one particular area.

Binder - fourth in last year’s championship - finished the Qatar MotoGP second, the only non-Ducati rider in the top seven.

His KTM has a major advantage over the Ducati but also suffers with a key weakness.

Asked if KTM could propel Binder into a title challenge, Michael Laverty said on TNT Sports: “Yes, 100%.

“For the KTM to blow past the Ducati on the straight here? That’s an advantage.

“It does seem like they’re getting off the corners better than they did last year. They are turning well.

“We couldn’t see where they were losing time but Brad will know what he’s missing.

“Whether it’s grip or turning? My money is on acceleration.

“The first bit off the corner, that’s where Ducati do so well. With a really long bike which lowers so well with their lowering device, and a torque management system which is docile down low. It doesn’t make sense but it punches with the usable aero from the Ducati.

“KTM have made inroads on that, over the winter, but there’s a little way to go yet.”

Binder finished second in both the sprint and the grand prix at the first round of 2024.

He edged Pramac’s Jorge Martin in their battle to finish behind Francesco Bagnaia in the main race.

“Two second places to start the season is fantastic,” Binder reacted.

“I’m much happier with the second place of today compared to the second place of yesterday.

“Yesterday I felt we were missing something but today it was much better. I knew today was going to be a super difficult race because we are super hard on the rear tyre sometimes.

“I needed to get it to the end so I was as clean as I could be. It was hard to stay composed because I could see Pecco was just there.

“It was like a carrot dangling and you just want to go for it. But I knew that if I attempted to push I might catch up a bit but I would lose a couple of seconds in the last few laps.

“I had to be really clever. It was awesome battling Jorge and I had a lot of fun. Let’s see if we can improve a bit because it would be awesome to give these boys a fight next time around.”