The official KTM RC16 will be in the hands of Brad Binder this season, who repeats for the fourth time in the official box of the Austrian factory, and Jack Miller, who arrives after running out of space at Ducati and as a substitute for Miguel Oliveira, who will ride one of the two official Aprilias in 2023. Since his arrival at MotoGP, in 2017, KTM has already celebrated seven victories, 18 podiums and 3 pole positions, but has not yet been able to be a serious contender for the title fight. Now, with a view to the season that will start on March 26 in Portugal, they are confident that they will finally be able to do it with a pair of drivers who are as experienced as they are chaste, but who until now have been guilty of irregularities.
The definitive orange explosion could come this year according to the expectations shown by the South African and the Australian at the presentation of Red Bull KTM Factory Racing. Watch out for good vibes from Binder: “It’s been a long winter so I’m beyond excited to get back on track and start over. It’s my fourth year in the queen class and I feel like our best chance yet to achieve something really big will be in 2023. We are ready to go, so let’s go to Sepang and see what those first days of training have in store for us.”
And as for Miller, he says: “I have a good feeling! By joining the KTM family again (he raced in Moto3 with the Austrian firm), now everything starts to get quite ‘real’. I’ve been thinking about this moment for quite some time. I finally got to see the colors of the 2023 KTM and myself in the suit and all the preparation for the upcoming season. It’s amazing to be back at KTM and to keep up with all the guys. The presentation is a small special preview before we get down to business in the Malaysian test.”
Both one and the other know very well what it is to win races in MotoGP. Binder has done it twice and Miller four times, Given the circumstance that he did it with both Honda and Ducati, so if he also achieved victory with the KTM he would be the first rider on the current grid capable of achieving it with three different factories. The one who can also do that at any time is Maverick Viñales, who has already won with Suzuki and Yamaha before trying it last year with Aprilia, a brand with which he has also stepped on the drawer. It will be interesting to see if it will be jackass either Mack the one who gets it first.