• Brad Binder had a tough weekend at the last Dutch Grand Prix.
• The South African qualified second from bottom, but was able to secure 12th place in the race.
• Binder is currently ninth in the championship.
• You can find more car stories on Wheels24
Miguel Oliveira was the standout KTM RC16 racer at the Motul TT Assen Grand Prix and the ninth round of MotoGP 2021 when the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing rider finished fifth in the Netherlands.
18 corners, flicks and dips formed the challenge of the TT Circuit Assen and one of the main pillars of Grand Prix racing. The upheaval in the pandemic-influenced schedule for 2020 resulted in the championship missing the Dutch stop and the passionate collective of MotoGP fans last summer.
Miguel Oliveira traveled to the Netherlands and clinched a fourth consecutive podium after finishing runner-up in both Italy and Germany and taking victory in Spain. The Portuguese started the 118 km long distance of 26 laps from sixth on the grid. The Tech3 KTM Factory Racing duo Danilo Petrucci and Iker Lecuona shot from 13th and 18th place respectively, while Brad Binder had to rush back from 21st place.
Brad Binder
Adequate progress
Oliveira held the group that was fighting for podium positions behind front runner Fabio Quartararo. He was fifth and fought for space with Joan Mir and Johann Zarco until the trio broke up and he had to be satisfied with five laps to go.
Binder, who had made good progress from the back row, finished twelfth. Tech3 KTM Factory Racing’s Danilo Petrucci scored three points for 13th place. Iker Lecuona crashed into the final chicane with seven laps to go and had a chance to get one of his strongest results of the season. The 26-year-old Oliveira has improved a lot in the championship standings and is now in seventh place, just 24 points behind third. Binder is ninth on the list.
MotoGP is now taking a break until the first two weekends in August. The Grand Prix of Styria and Austria will be held at the Red Bull Ring with a high-speed double-headed ball at the start of the second half of the season.
READ: Fabio Quartararo wins the Dutch MotoGP 2021, Brad Binder from SA is 12th after starting on 21st
Brad Binder
Team comments
Brad Binder: “Difficult race for me. Started 21st and tried to overtake the guys at the beginning and then I clearly didn’t have the speed in the first stages of the race. As the laps came to an end, I started to improve my driving behavior . Different points on the track and went faster. In the end I was able to repeat my best time on the last lap. I’m happy that I improved, but I lost too much time at the beginning. It was a weekend with ups and downs , and I lost myself a bit, but I gave everything in the race. I was a bit disappointed with 12th place, but we will regroup and come back stronger in the next phase of the season. ”
Mike Leitner, Red Bull KTM Race Manager: “We knew this track would be difficult for us. We didn’t ride here last year and then the FP2 was wet, so we lost valuable track time. If you can’t achieve all of your goals, but also finish fifth, we have to “Be happy. Miguel was strong in this group and Brad suffered from qualifying. He was a rookie here on the KTM RC16 but ended up with good lap times. It was a little more experience for him.
“Iker had such a good weekend and his crash was a shame. We regret him because it was a good performance. Danilo was just behind Brad and overall we have to think about what we can do better. Now we have the summer break, and this is good for everyone because it has been a tough season so far with the travel restrictions, we have two drivers in the top ten of the championship and Miguel was one of the top points scorers in the last four races, we made good progress and it did is a nice situation the next time we get together for two home GPs. “
Brad Binder