Binder races to season-best 6th in rain-hit German MotoGP™ Sprint

The latest MotoGP double-header began with the trip to the Sachsenring and for the German Grand Prix. The short 3.6km layout of the 13 corners of the course close to Chemnitz produces one of the slowest average speeds of the year and means a lot of turning and edge-grip emphasis.

Friday defied a changeable weather forecast for dry and warm conditions. The fastest Red Bull KTM RC16 runner was Pedro Acosta in P5 and teammate Brad Binder made Q2 direct in P10: just 0.6 of a second split the top ten. The Red Bull KTM Tech3 pitbox was only half occupied as Enea Bastianini’s illness had briefly hospitalized the Italian and put him out for the weekend. Maverick Viñales ended Friday in P11: only four hundredths of a second from Brad!

The climate did shift for Saturday and the Q1 and Q2 sessions took place in cooler temperatures and a wet track. Viñales successfully filtered through Q1 and ensured three KTM RC16s were in the 15-minute Q2. Acosta, P5, was fastest of the trio in the damp and with clear rain roost flying from the rear of the tires. Binder sat in P10 while Viñales was P12. Maverick suffered a highside crash on his out-lap and was unable to take further part. He was later diagnosed with a damaged left shoulder ligament and was cast to the sidelines for the weekend.

The Sprint was the longest of the season in terms of lap count. Acosta started better for the 15 circulations and was into the dispute for the top five but saved a crash and ran straight on at Turn 8 halfway through the race. He did well to stay on two wheels and rejoin the fray, eventually battling to 9th and the final point. Binder was solid in the mid-top ten and made his way to 6th: bagging four points.

The German Grand Prix will involve 30 laps on Sunday from 14.00 CEST and with a drier forecast.

Brad Binder, 10th in qualification, 6th in the Sprint: “Today, honestly, was quite OK.It would have been nice to be on the 2nd row but 10th place: I don’t think it changed too much. I got off to a good start and didn’t quite have the pace to go with the guys in front of me. 6th was the best I could manage but it’s been a while since I’ve had a decent Sprint. 6th was better, and I’m looking forward to seeing how we go in the dry tomorrow…I hope it will be dry!”

Pedro Acosta, 5th in qualification, 9th in the Sprint: “A slight mistake makes everything look worse than it is. We have to be happy because even with a bad start we made good passes. For how much I was struggling to put temperature in the tires – I was not riding bad. We have to take the positives: we took points and we pass to the next chapter tomorrow.”

Aki Ajo, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager: “Not our best day because we missed Enea, and Maverick was injured in qualifying, so we wish them all the best and a quick recovery to the guys. On the other hand, if we think of our pace both in the dry and the wet then we have to be pleased with the progress we have made from the last races. Also, we definitely see improvements thanks to the riders’ feelings, comments and their level of comfort with our race package. We have more stability because we are not testing so many things through the weekend anymore and this helps to assist short-term performance. Q2 speed was good and this was important to ensure the starting positions for the races. The Sprint today had positives and Pedro, like in Assen, was close to the podium fight. Just one mistake cost him that chance. The top ten was good after he saved the crash. I’m really happy for Brad and with our working methods he is starting to find his confidence back. The race and the riding today will have given him a small boost.”

1. Marc Marquez (ESP) Ducati 1:27.811

2. Johann Zarco (FRA) Honda +0.151

3. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA) Aprilia +0.421

1. Marc Marquez (ESP) Ducati 22:25.747

2. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA) Aprilia +0.938

3. Fabio Quartararo (FRA) Yamaha +4.361

Alvaro Carpe was the fifth fastest rider through a wet Moto3 Q2 qualifying on Saturday. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rookie was only a quarter of a second from Pole Position and will roll to the middle of the second row for the 23-lap distance on Sunday. Teammate Jose Antonio Rueda took a measured approach. The Spaniard, six times a GP winner this season and current championship leader, ended the day in P12. Valentin Perrone was marginally quicker than Red Bull KTM Tech3 teammate Jacob Roulstone with the pair classifying P15 and P18.

Moto2 will round Sachsenring 25 times on Sunday and with Red Bull KTM Ajo duo Deniz Öncü and Collin Veijer starting from P6 and P23 on the grid respectively. Öncü is hunting his third trophy of his second season in the category and was already fast enough for P11 on Friday and through the Practice chrono. Veijer is still in the recovery process from the training accident that meant he missed three events. The Dutch rookie was 23rd in the rain and through Q1.

The Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup assembled for round five of seven and therefore the ninth and tenth races of the 2025 campaign. It was the first time the series has lapped Sachsenring since 2022. The championship has so far formed into a duel between Malaysian youngster Hakim Danish and Spaniard Brian Uriarte but with other young KTM-mounted hopefuls exploring the podium positions of this electric feeder series, such as Indonesia’s Veda Pratama, who won both races last time out at Mugello. The opening dash involved four riders going for the checkered flag and Uriarte prevailed by less than 0.2 of a second. The next 15-lap battle will occur on Sunday afternoon.

1. Scott Ogden (GBR), KTM 1:35.001

2. David Almansa (ESP), Honda +0.042

3. Guido Pini (ITA), KTM +0.134

7. Maximo Quiles (ESP) CFMOTO Aspar Team +0.355

24. Dennis Foggia (ITA) CFMOTO Aspar Team 1:39.155 (Q1)

1. Jake Dixon (GBR) 1:33.487

2. Barry Baltus (BEL) +0.070

3. Tony Arbolino (ITA) +0.075

15. Daniel Holgado (ESP) CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team +3.627

17. David Alonso (COL) CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team +5.008