Brad qualifies fourth in Catalunya but suffers DNF in Sprint Race

The Gran Premio de Catalunya surged up to pace for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing right from the first laps of the sixth round of the season. Brad Binder was able to take his KTM RC16 to 4th in qualification and then raced hard to win the Sprint, unfortunately falling out of the lead at Turn 5.

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing entered round six of the current Grand Prix campaign with memories of past success at the popular Mediterranean venue. The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is a challenging mix of diverse corners with a 4.4km trajectory traditionally low on grip and therefore high on tire wear. The track was covered by warm but windy and cloudy skies.

Brad was immediately among the fastest riders through FP1 on Friday morning and then weathered two falls at Turn 2 to still log a lap to be P2 at the end of the day. The South African was rapid to qualify 4th and just 0.14 from Pole Position.

The sixth Sprint of the year began Saturday afternoon and lasted for 12 rapid-fire laps. Brad was in the mix from the first meters and had another strong start with the KTM RC16. He moved to the front when Raul Fernandez crashed but then lost the front end tipping into Turn 5, a tumble also suffered by the world champion a few minutes later.

Brad Binder

“At the end of the day I tried my best. I felt good, felt fast and thought my best would be enough. Unfortunately, I lost the front in Turn 5, which is easy to do at this track and I don’t feel like I did much wrong to be honest. I was trying to ride clean because I was leading the race. I’ve been really fast this weekend and we’ll try again tomorrow.”