Brad lines up 16th on the Styrian GP grid after difficult qualifying
The first of two Grands Prix around the spectacular but fast ten-corner layout of the Red Bull Ring brought MotoGP back to life after a five-week summer hiatus. The Styrian round saw a decent quantity of race fans return to MotoGP events and the customary KTM grandstand was packed with eager spectators.
Weather conditions remained warm and consistently bright throughout Saturday. All five KTM RC16s riders entered the Q1 qualification period after a tricky day of Free Practice on Friday where the teams had to negotiate dry and wet sessions.
Brad Binder lines up in 16th for the GP tomorrow. The South African held promising pace in the first two sectors of the Red Bull Ring but could not construct a full lap to remain in Q2 contention.
The Styrian Grand Prix begins with Moto3 at 11.00. Moto2 follows at 12.20 and then MotoGP at 14.00 CET. The weather forecast predicts stormy showers and an unstable climate for Sunday.
Brad Binder:
“A difficult Q1 I felt I had quite good speed but had lost a bit of feeling in FP4. I felt I was pushing too much in the wrong places and going too deep on the brakes and didn’t get a clean lap. It will be difficult to start in 16th tomorrow but I’ve started back there before and have always been able to make my way forward.”