Brad Binder Faces Challenges at Sepang Testing, Teammate Acosta Shows Strong Performance

South African MotoGP rider Brad Binder faced a challenging second day of testing at Petronas Sepang Raceway in Malaysia, as he finished the day with a best lap time of 1:58:132, placing him 11th overall for the session. Binder’s performance lagged behind his teammate, Pedro Acosta, who ended the day with a lap time of 1:57:805, securing 7th place.

Last 20mins on the and @37_pedroacosta sits in th with a 1’57.805 while @BradBinder_33 is th with 1’58.132!#KTM #ReadyToRace #SepangTest pic.twitter.com/3QGiqjZf50

— RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING (@KTM_Racing) February 6, 2025

Binder’s Red Bull KTM RC16 featured a newly fitted rear spoiler, which had been the subject of some discussion prior to the tests. The bike’s aesthetic appeal has drawn some criticism, though it’s clear that the design’s primary focus is aerodynamics. Red Bull KTM is focused on improving performance as they search for their next World Title, with Binder leading their Factory Racing team into the 2025 season.

I hope KTM’s new seat unit is fast, because it certainly isn’t beautiful Looks like they’re also experimenting with mass dampers, based on the size of that pic.twitter.com/wgU1YRMet1

— Simon Patterson (@denkmit) February 6, 2025

The Sepang test saw some weather disruptions as rain entered the mix just two hours before the end of practice, though it did not cause significant delays. However, the session was not without incident. Six-time World Champion Marc Marquez suffered a crash at turn 9 just 15 minutes before the practice session concluded. Fortunately, Marquez walked away unscathed. On the other hand, the two Red Bull KTM Tech3 racers, Maverick Vinales and Enea Bastianini, struggled to make an impact, finishing at the bottom of the leaderboard.

Ducati riders dominated the top spots on the second day of testing, with the exception of Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo, who posted a strong performance. This suggests that Ducati remains the team to beat as we approach the new season.

As the riders prepare for the final day of shakedown testing on Friday, they will have one last chance to adjust to their 2025 machines before heading to the Chang International Circuit in Thailand later this month.

Defending champion Jorge Martin, however, faced a setback on Thursday. The Aprilia Racing rider suffered a painful crash, which kept him in the hospital for 24 hours. Speculation around the cause of Martin’s crash points to a possible issue with the tyres. His team had opted for a harder compound on the first day at Sepang, while a softer compound might have prevented such an early crash.

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