Jack Miller battled hard for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing through qualifying and Sprint action at the epic, fast and sprawling Circuit of the Americas for round three of 2024 MotoGP. The Australian took 7th in the afternoon race. Brad Binder ranked 12th for the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas Sprint under a hot Texan sky. The KTM Academy was well represented by Jose Antonio Rueda who clocked the 2nd fastest lap-time in Moto3™.
‘COTA’ attracts adjectives like ‘tricky’, ‘technical’ and even more fanciful ones like ‘rodeo’ for the weaving blend of turns and speed through the 5.5km, 20-corner layout on the outskirts of Austin. Red Bull KTM came to the popular site hunting more competitiveness and with their eyes on podium potential for the first time in the USA.
Sunshine, breezy and hot conditions graced both Friday’s practice schedule and Saturday’s intense qualification schedule heading into the 10-lap afternoon Sprint. Both riders had to attempt Q1 in the morning and an early slow-speed fall at Turn 11 for Binder disrupted the session. The South African pushed in the final minutes to register a ‘flyer’ but missed out. Miller, in contrast, headed the session but then lacked enough tires to make an impact in Q2 and took 11th.
Regaining ground was the theme of the Sprint and Jack surged to the front of the second group and held 6th in the second half of the race. Brad was part of the same large pack and a few positions further back. Miller dueled all the way to the flag and pocketed points for 7th. Brad was 12th but working on set-up and information for the GP distance tomorrow.
The Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas gets underway at 14.00 local time (21.00 CEST) and will run for 20 laps. Moto3 is the first race of the day at 18.00 CEST and then Moto2 at 19.15.
Jack Miller, 11th in qualification, 7th in the Sprint: “Obviously we wanted a bit more but we had a decent start and got into the group. I had a nice battle towards the end but still have to get an understanding of that last sector [of the lap]. I could catch-up in some sectors but lost in others. We have a bit of work to do but happy enough. Fingers crossed we can get in that position tomorrow and have a crack at the top five. The pace of the race will be different so will the strategy.”
Brad Binder, 17th in qualification, 12th in the Sprint: “A tough Saturday. The big issue this morning was that when I crashed I had one bike set up in one direction and one bike in another. I had to qualify on the one that I didn’t want and with a mix of used and new tires. I messed up the qualifying and it made the whole day difficult. Starting from 17th was not ideal but I had a good one and it took me a while to work out the setting I had on the bike and how I could push. Now I understand our potential and I think in the race tomorrow I can give it a bit more of a push in the first laps.”
Francesco Guidotti, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager: “Qualifying was a bit tricky. We went to Q1 and Brad’s crash compromised that session for him while Jack got through to Q2 although he couldn’t put a lap together as he had done before. Starting from the fourth and six rows we knew it would be tough for the Sprint with little time to recover positions. Anyhow Jack did his job and brought home some points. Brad recovered some positions but not quite enough. We have another chance tomorrow and will try to leave this race with something in the pocket.”
- From KTM Factory Racing
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