Marco Bezzecchi
Pedro Acosta has told KTM how the team need to change the RC16 at the 2026 United States Grand Prix, as they “need” Brad Binder to also be able to perform with the bike.
KTM largely relied on Acosta alone to lead their efforts over the first two rounds of the 2026 MotoGP season in Thailand and Brazil. The 21-year-old won the Buriram Sprint and finished P2 in the Thailand Grand Prix, and he also left Brazil in third in the standings with 42 points.
Binder has been the second-best KTM rider so far this season, but he only ranks ninth in the standings on 13 points. Tech3 stars Enea Bastianini and Maverick Vinales also only rank 17th and 20th, with the former scoring five points on the RC16 and the latter yet to score a point.
Motorsport director Pit Beirer admits KTM are “not where we want”, with Acosta being their only rider able to deliver on the RC16. Bastianini has shown at the United States GP that the Italian could have a strong weekend, after he finished Friday’s practice session in 10th place.
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Pedro Acosta urges KTM to make the RC16 ‘more consistent’ to help Brad Binder
Acosta led KTM’s efforts once again as Ducati rival Marc Marquez set the pace in practice at the United States GP in the pre-qualifying session. The Spaniard was 0.323s slower than his compatriot’s 2:00.927, while Bastianini and Binder (in P19) were 0.652s and 1.510s slower.
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Vinales has withdrawn from the United States GP due to injury, after a screw in his shoulder from his surgery last year became loose. But seeing Binder struggle again shows Acosta that KTM ought to make the RC16 “more consistent” for everyone, so they can improve the bike.
“I didn’t feel as bad as in Brazil, but we’re still lacking a bit of engine power,” Acosta said, via quotes by Motosprint. “When we are slipstreaming, we’ve improved a bit, but we’re lacking speed over a single lap.
“At the moment, all the riders on this bike need to be able to go fast. Enea did really well today, but Brad and Maverick have struggled at the start of the year. Let’s try to choose a more consistent package for everyone, so we can gather more information.”
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Michele Pirro is “surprised” by the difference between Acosta and Binder in the factory KTM garage this year, with the former performing far better than his teammate. Binder only came P6 as Acosta won the Sprint in Buriram, P7 in the Thailand GP and P15 in the Goiania Sprint.
Binder crashed out of the Brazilian GP, which Acosta finished in P9 with a 13.153s margin to Bastianini in P15 as the second-best KTM racer. KTM have sacrificed top speed to make the RC16 a more complete bike this term, but Binder is yet to profit in the same way as Acosta.
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