Brad Binder and Jack Miller finish the MotoGP test at Misano in the top 5 – Both examine KTM’s new carbon chassis, among other things
For the KTM factory riders the MotoGP test in Misano ended on Monday in third and fifth place, with Jack Miller in particular improving significantly compared to the race weekend. Together with Brad Binder, he completed just over 140 laps and tested the new carbon chassis, among other things.
KTM tester Dani Pedrosa had thus finished fourth twice during the weekend. After he himself did not take part in the Monday test, the chassis was passed on to Miller and Binder.
However, the riders did not reveal much about the innovation in their debriefings. “It was a positive day. I did a lot of laps and did some comparative testing of things, including different frames,” Binder confirmed.
Binder: Chassis variants best combined
He drove the carbon chassis as well as a revised steel frame alongside his standard chassis. “They all had positive and negative sides. Sometimes the turning was better, sometimes the grip. The best would be a combination of all three.”
Asked if the carbon version might be used again in a race this season, Binder revealed, “I don’t know what the plan is. I rode it here and gave my feedback. I suppose as soon as it’s ready we can go ahead with it.”
Meanwhile, KTM team manager Francesco Guidotti insists that “everything looks very promising”. “But we want to do more laps to better understand where we can improve further and, above all, to know what we can use in the near future and what we still need to develop for 2024. “
Further development of the engine for 2024 tested
Since KTM has only tested this chassis at Misano so far, it would probably be too big a risk to use it at the very next race. However, it could be used towards the end of the season, should Binder no longer have a chance at the World Championship.
He said after the test, “I feel pretty comfortable, but you always have to be a bit careful in these tests because with so much rubber on the track a lot of things can be great and the weaker points are harder to find.”
“We also tried some things with the engine and gained some more information for the factory to move forward,” the South African continued.
KTM was also reportedly testing an initial development of the engine for 2024, but Miller, when asked about it, was reluctant to come clean. “You’ll have to find out,” he said to the journalists on site. “Just come and see us in the pits, we have nothing to hide. “
Miller: Progress after weak weekend
After a difficult race weekend at Misano without a single point, Miller saw an improvement on Monday, “This test couldn’t have come at a better time. I was able to focus on my riding and my set-up. “
“I’m already faster than I was at the weekend, and that’s with the medium tyre. I am happy with the progress we have made so far. As I have been saying all along: The bike has incredible potential.”
“I just need to understand better how to adapt my riding style to get the most out of it. There were a lot of things to try and the guys were busy until 3am building our bikes. There is a lot in the pipeline for future races and also for next year,” said Miller.