Pedro Acosta, Enea Bastianini and Brad Binder starred in a hot and sunny Catalan Sprint and the fifteenth Saturday of activity in 2025 MotoGP. The Spaniard, Italian and South African engaged in a close and entertaining three-way battle at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya as they took their KTM RC16s to P4, P5 and P6; separated by two tenths of a second at the line.
- Pedro Acosta heads the timing screens on Friday morning, seals 5th place during Q2 and then wins the KTM contest for the top four during the 12-lap Sprint
- Enea Bastianini charges to P9 and the third row of the grid through morning Quali and then lays rubber at the Montmelo course to take 5th in the Sprint
- Brad Binder hikes his speed and potential with P1 on Friday afternoon. The South African qualifies P11 and confirms 6th by the flag
- Maverick Viñales makes his second return since left shoulder surgery following his crash at the German Grand Prix in July. The Spaniard sets the 22nd fastest time and ends the Sprint with P17
The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya has been a staple venue for MotoGP since 1992 and the track’s inauguration. The popular 4.6km course mixes 15 corners of varying speed demands as well as a long home straight permitting speeds close to 360kmph. Red Bull KTM have tasted MotoGP victory on Catalan soil and came to Spain optimistic of trophies after the increased competitiveness of previous Grands Prix.
Friday began positively with all four KTM RC16 riders in the top ten of Free Practice 1 and the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing duo of Pedro Acosta and Brad Binder fastest through the speed traps. A sunny afternoon Practice session allowed Binder to surge: #33 set a new lap record on his way to P1. Acosta was a tenth of a second away in P2 and Enea Bastianini was P6. Maverick Viñales, on his first appearance since attempting the Austrian Grand Prix, entered Q1.
Saturday was hotter and busier at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. Viñales was only half a second from making the cut in Q1 and took 22nd on the grid. In Q2 Acosta vied for Pole Position but his best lap was clipped for a marginal touch of green track limits. The Spaniard had to rely on his next fastest effort to consolidate 5th and in the middle of the second row. Bastianini was 9th – only 0.6 from Pole – and Binder ranked 11th.
The Sprint saw Acosta, Binder and Bastianini grouped together after the first few laps as Acosta also persevered with diminishing rear grip. The trio swapped positions and circulated in close proximity. They remained wedged together until the checkered flag for three points-scores. Viñales was content to complete the distance and made 17th.
The grand prix will round the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for 24 laps at 14.00 CEST tomorrow.
Pedro Acosta, 5th in qualification, 4th in the Sprint: “Quite strange. My start was quite OK but then I felt that the rear tire did not have a lot of grip. I tried to warm it up but the grip I’d had in the rest of the sessions was not there. Anyway, P4 again and we are constantly in the top five and not making mistakes. We have to keep going in this way. At one point Brad passed me and then Enea! But it was fun to see people online comparing us to the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup!”
Enea Bastianini, 9th in qualification, 5th in the Sprint: “We had a good race. I suffered a bit in the first laps because with the full tank I cannot push like I want but then my pace improved. I watched ‘the movie’ from behind from a few laps! And then decided to join it. My Q2 could have been better but I made a mistake towards the end of the lap. Without it I was probably on the second row but when you are 0.1 from 5th place then…it’s like this.”
Brad Binder, 11th in qualification, 6th in the Sprint: “We had a pretty eventful fight out there! I thought we would have a bit more pace to go with the leaders but all three of us were at the same speed and it made for a cool fight. We had a small issue in qualifying and I had to use my spare bike. Starting a bit further back than I would have liked didn’t help but we were able to do a decent job. Tomorrow will be a long race and we’ll have to conserve those tires. We’ll see.”
Maverick Viñales, 22nd in qualification, 17th in the Sprint: “Not bad, to be honest. Today was a bit easier than yesterday, probably because I am less tense on the bike. I lose too much on the left side. As much as I have the mentality that this weekend is part of the recovery, I just want to push! I need to understand that my body has arrived to a limit and I need to be intelligent and listen to it. Tomorrow we’ll evaluate after the warm-up…but I feel I can do the full race, so we’ll try it.”
Aki Ajo, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager: “What a race! Very exciting, and we have to be happy with three riders in the top six. For sure, the target is even higher and I feel, depending on the conditions, that we can put that target on a podium fight. I repeat though: it’s important to work well and solidly and make the steps closer to the front. It was great to watch our riders today and let’s hope tomorrow we can do something similar or even better.”
Results Qualifying MotoGP Grand Prix of Catalunya
1. Alex Marquez (ESP) Ducati 1:37.536
2. Fabio Quartararo (FRA) Yamaha +0.267
3. Marc Marquez (ESP) Ducati +0.409
5. Pedro Acosta (ESP) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +0.483
9. Enea Bastianini (ITA) Red Bull KTM Tech3 +0.651
11. Brad Binder (RSA) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +0.797
22. Maverick Viñales (ESP) Red Bull KTM Tech3 1:38.531 (Q1)
Results MotoGP Sprint Grand Prix of Catalunya
1. Marc Marquez (ESP) Ducati 19:58.946
2. Fabio Quartararo (FRA) Yamaha +1.299
3. Fabio Di Giannantonio (ITA) Ducati +3.653
4. Pedro Acosta (ESP) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +5.868
5. Enea Bastianini (ITA) Red Bull KTM Tech3 +5.913
6. Brad Binder (RSA) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +5.943
17. Maverick Viñales (ESP) Red Bull KTM Tech3 +17.040
KTM GP Academy
Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Jose Antonio Rueda was the most advanced KTM GP Academy recruit on the Moto3 grid in P7. The championship leader will start from the peak of the third row after another tight Q2 qualifier. Teammate Alvaro Carpe was fractions of a second slower in P9 as Red Bull KTM Tech3 duo Jacob Roulstone and Valentin Perrone will start the 18-lapper from P11 and P15 on Sunday morning.
Moto2 Pole Position fell to Daniel Holgado but Red Bull KTM Ajo riders Collin Veijer and Daniel Muñoz were part of a strong pursuing pack that saw 18 racers divided by just 0.8 of a second. The Dutchman continued his positive progression of speed and form in his maiden season in the intermediate class and took his first front row spot thanks to the 2nd fastest lap from Q2. Muñoz, substituting Deniz Öncü as the Turk recovers from right leg surgery and making his fourth appearance for the team, guided his machine to a decent 6th position.
Results Qualifying Moto3 Grand Prix of Catalunya
1. David Almansa (ESP) Honda 1:46.877
2. Joel Kelso (AUS) KTM +0.202
3. Angel Piqueras (ESP), KTM +0.209
7. Jose Antonio Rueda (ESP), Red Bull KTM Ajo +0.363
9. Alvaro Carpe (ESP), Red Bull KTM Ajo +0.441
10. Maximo Quiles (ESP) CFMOTO Aspar Team +0.533
11. Jacob Roulstone (AUS), Red Bull KTM Tech3 +0.661
13. Dennis Foggia (ITA) CFMOTO Aspar Team +0.790
15. Valentin Perrone (ARG), Red Bull KTM Tech3 +1.031
Results Qualifying Moto2 Grand Prix of Catalunya
1. Daniel Holgado (ESP) CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team 1:41.549
2. Jake Dixon (GBR) +0.080
3. Collin Veijer (NED) Red Bull KTM Ajo +0.189
6. Daniel Muñoz (ESP) Red Bull KTM Ajo +0.258
16. David Alonso (COL) CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team +0.709
Posted on September 6, 2025 by Michael Le Pard
