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On concluding the three-day Malaysian test Pedro Acosta claimed that he and the KTM were in better shape than the stopwatch had shown, and in Thailand he took it upon himself to translate his reading of things into hard facts. The rider from Murcia is a man of his word, and fourth place, set on the 18th lap of the morning session, thus put the best of the RC16s on the track at the top.
On the other hand, you have to scroll with your index finger and eye down to twelfth place to track down the other Red Bull KTM Factory Racing rider, Brad Binder who has never seemed to be on the bubble this winter and even today was almost nine tenths away from the top, compared to the 1'29.233 recorded by Acosta, just 278 thousandths away from Marc Marquez's benchmark. However, both the Spaniard and the South African, in addition to pointing out some problems encountered in the time attack, say they are satisfied with the work done with the team ahead of the 2025 season and share the impression that they have a better bike in their hands than last season. That is actually not such a foregone conclusion if we think about the last turbulent months they have been going through in Mattighofen.
"We have to be happy," Acosta began, "we tried a lot of things and the truth is that the bike has improved a lot when compared to last year's bike. We still lack precision, but I think that will come with time. In the time attack and race simulation we had some problems because there was something that didn't work - the Spaniard avoided specifying - but the race pace was not bad. Irrespective of that, despite the problems we had we were quite competitive. It was my best pre-season and KTM's best pre-season."
Do you think you can improve further ahead of the first race?
"First of all, we will have to be clear-headed in evaluating the results, because in two weeks we will race on a track where we have just done testing. The situation could change when we get to America."
Which tire are you best with?
"Hard to say because one is good, one is bad - it's a bit of a lottery."
Compared to your fastest race lap in 2024 today you were 3 tenths faster.
"This bike has improved, we are faster, it's easier to push, overall we have a more complete bike. Of that we have to be happy, we missed something in the time attack - he went back to stress - however, it is also a completely new bike, we have to get to know it, but more or less we have a clear direction to follow. In five days of testing, excluding the second day in Sepang with the crash, we were always competitive."
What do you aspire to in this 2025?
"Ambitions are high, I can't wait to get started. Clearly on race weekends the work is different and we will have to wait at least a few Grand Prix to understand the real values in the field."
Binder: "the KTM is faster on the qualifying lap"
In spite of the unexceptional results, Brad Binder also seemed confident about the strides made by KTM. The key issue will now be to put all the pieces together to arrive ready for the race that the Buriram circuit will host in two weeks.
"This last day was pretty good. We tried a time attack in the morning and a long run in the afternoon. Not bad. We made small steps forward from last year for sure. We need more speed on the qualifying lap. Overall it wasn't bad, we found our way, now it's a matter of putting all the pieces together to be ready to come back in 15 days."
Where can you go to get this speed that is missing in the time attack?
"Thinking about my riding, I stay back a few times in Turn 4, I can do a couple of things there that I need to see well and get tighter on the straight. Once I feel more comfortable we'll get there."
Did the long run on the other hand satisfy you?
"It was good, not great. It was more useful for us to understand which tires we should use next time."
Do you think Ducati's choice to use the 2024 bike could be an opportunity for other teams to try to catch up to them faster?
"We mainly have to think about our material. Last year at one point we made a series of mistakes that did not allow us to be closer to them."
Do you think you will be able to reduce the 14-second gap suffered in the Sprint Race held here in Buriram last season?
"My idea is that we are closer today. Maybe in the time attack we are still a bit behind but in the pace over several laps we are closer. Let's wait and see how it will be in 10 days."
How ready do you feel for the race?
"I think we are at 80 percent now.The other 20 percent is in putting all the pieces together and figuring everything out. In testing like today, it's hard to put the best package together. Now we have the opportunity to work on it and see what happens."
