MotoGP Qatar GP
Binder blames Qatar MotoGP practice slump on “paranormal activity”
KTM’s Brad Binder says he slumped from first to 15th across Friday practice for the MotoGP Qatar Grand Prix because of “paranormal activity” with his electronics in FP2.
Lewis Duncan
Published: Mar 5, 2022, 9:42 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
The double MotoGP race winner came out of the blocks swinging on Friday at the Losail International Circuit by topping FP1.
But he slumped to 15th on the combined order come the end of FP2 later that day and will likely face Q1 in qualifying on Saturday as FP3 conditions will make lap time improvements difficult.
Binder says issues with his RC16’s engine brake system, which proved to be intermittent in FP2, led to his issues but otherwise feels good on the bike.
“I mean, I can’t be going to bed unhappy,” Binder said on Friday evening. “FP1 was good, my feelings were quite good. Unfortunately, in FP2, we had something really strange going on.
“We had, I don’t know what to call it exactly, but it was a bit of ‘paranormal activity’, where sometimes I’d close the gas and go down gears and I’d have engine brake.
“And other times I wouldn’t, so we had some small issue there that we couldn’t quite figure out. So, the boys are at it now and they’ll fix that.
“Other than that I’m quite happy, I feel good on the bike, I just couldn’t really push to the limit because I wasn’t sure what I’d be getting going corner to corner.
“So, a small hiccup. Unfortunately, it’s sending us to Q1, but I’ve been there enough times, so let’s see what we can do.”
Brad Binder, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
Photo by: MotoGP
Binder says KTM’s issue of a lack of front-end support when running the front soft tyre – which has to be used in the night sessions in Qatar because of the cooler temperatures – remains, but insists the Austrian marque is in “much better shape” that it was this time last year.
“I think the thing is I feel really good when we were on the hard front tyre in the hot conditions,” he added. “I have a lot of support from the front and I feel I can push it quite hard.
“But when we use the soft front at night when you have to use that tyre, because it’s the only one that can run in that temperature – also the medium can too, but the medium didn’t quite had the edge grip that I need – it’s a bit of a struggle because I don’t have the support with the soft front.
“The edge is quite good on it, but just difficult to stop the bike. It’s difficult to say exactly because we had some issues on the engine brake side. It’s something that we’ve always noticed that our stronger point is when it’s hot.
“I think we’re in a much, much better spot than we were here last year. We just have a few issues to work out, but tomorrow we’re going to give it a send for sure.”
Read Also:
- Marc Marquez “riding in a strange way” in Qatar MotoGP practice
- Quartararo “not on real limit” of Yamaha MotoGP bike in Qatar
- Rins: Why Suzuki can’t relax despite strong Qatar MotoGP form
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Qatar MotoGP qualifying - Start time, how to watch
Next article Qatar MotoGP: Bastianini tops FP3 to push Quartararo into Q1
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Lewis Duncan
MotoGP 2025: Full rider line-up revealed
MotoGP
MotoGP
MotoGP 2025: Full rider line-up revealed
A year on from Marquez’s Germany MotoGP meltdown, has Honda improved?
MotoGP
MotoGP
German GP
A year on from Marquez’s Germany MotoGP meltdown, has Honda improved?
What’s behind MotoGP’s right-hander chaos in Germany practice?
MotoGP
MotoGP
German GP
What’s behind MotoGP’s right-hander chaos in Germany practice?
More from
Brad Binder
Pit Beirer admits KTM's engine problems “almost killed us”
MotoGP
MotoGP
Pit Beirer admits KTM's engine problems “almost killed us”
The five riders leaving MotoGP in 2027 - and where they are headed next
MotoGP
MotoGP
The five riders leaving MotoGP in 2027 - and where they are headed next
KTM finally gets to 'revitalize' its MotoGP engines
MotoGP
MotoGP
Aragon GP
KTM finally gets to 'revitalize' its MotoGP engines
More from
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
Maverick Vinales: “If I stay at home, I don’t get paid”
MotoGP
MotoGP
Australian GP
Maverick Vinales: “If I stay at home, I don’t get paid”
KTM sees MotoGP 2027 as a fresh start: “We never had the chance to build a new bike”
MotoGP
MotoGP
KTM sees MotoGP 2027 as a fresh start: “We never had the chance to build a new bike”
Latest news
Cleetus McFarland set to compete full-time for 2027 ARCA championship
ARCA
ARCA ARCA 29 min
Cleetus McFarland set to compete full-time for 2027 ARCA championship
Why McLaren gave team order to Oscar Piastri in F1 US GP
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
United States GP
3 h
Why McLaren gave team order to Oscar Piastri in F1 US GP
Winners and losers from a frantic NASCAR Cup race at Talladega
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Talladega II
3 h
Winners and losers from a frantic NASCAR Cup race at Talladega
Herta endorses IndyCar’s international return with Barcelona while marveling at Palou’s dominance
IndyCar
Indy IndyCar 4 h
Herta endorses IndyCar’s international return with Barcelona while marveling at Palou’s dominance
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe