Marco Bezzecchi
Sebastian Risse has shared what steps KTM have taken to improve the RC16 for Brad Binder and Pedro Acosta even if it meant they sacrificed performance in other areas.
KTM have started the 2026 MotoGP season strongly to lead the riders’ and teams’ standings after the first round. Acosta leads the riders’ standings after his victory in the Buriram Sprint and P2 finish in the Thailand Grand Prix, while Binder sealed P6 and P7 finishes respectively.
Ducati’s Marc Marquez suffering a race-ending puncture after damaging his wheel rim in the Thailand GP, and Aprilia pilot Marco Bezzecchi crashing out of the lead in the Buriram Sprint, helped KTM and Acosta claim their early spots at the top of the teams’ and riders’ standings.
Additionally, Acosta did not “feel like a winner” after the Buriram Sprint as he only inherited the lead out of the final corner on the final lap as Marquez received a penalty. Marquez was ordered to drop one position after forcing Acosta wide on the penultimate lap of the Sprint.
Has Marc Marquez’s Buriram Sprint penalty set too low of a bar for racing incidents in MotoGP?
KTM have ‘sacrificed’ top speed to improve the RC16’s overall lap time in 2026
Acosta was able to fight Marquez for the Sprint win throughout the 13-lap race, and he also came through fights with the Ducati ace and Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez to claim P2 in the Thailand GP, as he had less tyre degradation. Binder also rose from P11 in both of the races.
READ MORE: Everything to know about KTM Tech3 including the MotoGP team’s riders
Yet technical director Risse says KTM did not focus on improving the RC16’s tyre wear to gift Binder and Acosta a better bike. Instead, their priority was to improve the RC16’s overall lap time, even if KTM had to sacrifice some of their renowned top speed to be faster elsewhere.
Risse told SPEEDWEEK: “We’ve taken many small steps. Around the summer break of 2025, we decided on a direction, and we’ve consistently pursued it.
“It sounds very simple, but the goal is always to make the motorcycle faster. The primary focus has always been on improving lap times, not on improving tyre wear.”
Risse added: “One thing led to another. There are many ways to become faster. One of them is to carry more speed onto the straights, reduce the power peaks somewhat, and also sacrifice some top speed.”
The fastest top speed recorded by a KTM rider in Buriram was only the fifth-best
Do you consider Pedro Acosta a MotoGP winner?
Tech3 rider Enea Bastianini recorded the fastest top speed aboard the KTM RC16 across the Thailand GP event. Yet his 342.8km/h (213mph) registered during practice was just the fifth-fastest top speed in Buriram, where Aprilia riders had three of the four quickest top speeds.
Factory Aprilia duo Bezzecchi and Jorge Martin both registered 345km/h (214.3mph) during Q2, which works Ducati rider Francesco Bagnaia also achieved during practice. Trackhouse’s Ai Ogura also recorded 343.9km/h (213.6mph) aboard his Aprilia to edge Bastianini’s speed.
LCR rider Johann Zarco reached the same top speed aboard his Honda RC213V in practice as Bastianini achieved on his KTM RC16. Yet works KTM rider Acosta’s top speed was only the eighth-fastest (341.7km/h, 212.3mph), and Binder hit a speed of 339.6km/h (211mph).
Receive racing news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
