Brad runs third on opening day in Valencia

The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 riders are the men of the moment in the intermediate class, and they kept up their flyaway form this Friday as the Valencia GP got underway. Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder were first and third, respectively, on the combined timesheets after FP1 and FP2.

For Brad and Miguel, the return to Europe has not changed their excellent performance, and they completed the first quarter of an hour of FP1 in the top two positions. Making a single stop in the pits to fit new tyres, the pair remained amongst the Top 5 at all times.

That dynamic repeated in FP2, as both were strong from the beginning of the session. Brad remained in the Top3 for much of the session, maintaining a steady pace and, like his teammate, improving in the afternoon. He clocked a 1:36.010 to secure third position.

Tomorrow both Brad and teammate Oliveira will be gunning for pole in qualifying for the season finale, which will be held at 3:05pm local time.

#41 BRAD BINDER
“This first day in Valencia has gone very well. Honestly, I did not expect us to be so quick from the get-go. It seems that something has just ‘clicked.’ I don’t know what we’ve done or what has changed, but I’m feeling more comfortable with the bike and stronger with every passing race. It’s the best Friday I’ve had in the intermediate class. Tomorrow I hope that when we go out on track everything is fine and that it is a bit hotter than today. We must continue to work hard on our pace ahead of the race, because if we do that we will definitely get a good qualifying position and we will be ready for Sunday.”