Factory KTM riders Brad Binder and Pedro Acosta discuss their respective ambitions for the upcoming 2025 MotoGP season.
The Austrian marque bolstered its factory line-up by promoting Acosta after he spent his debut MotoGP campaign with its sister team Tech3, achieving nine podiums and finishing sixth overall in the championship.
This resulted in the departure of four-time race winner Jack Miller, who moved to Pramac Yamaha following an unsuccessful stint that saw just one podium finish over two years.
South African rider Binder remains involved in the KTM project as he embarks on his sixth season with the team in MotoGP.
“It is crazy to think that this is my sixth season in MotoGP already,” he admitted.
“To be honest 2024 was the year where I probably learnt the most. Coming into 2025 I feel that it has made me a much better rider.
“My goal for the season is to take what I learnt and make that step forward to fight with the guys at the front. We are not far.
“We finished 2nd in the Constructors championship so we have one left in front of us.
“When I see how hard people are working at the factory and how much energy there is behind the scenes it is clear we are going to get there.”
Pedro Acosta pinpoints two areas for improvement in 2025
Though Binder has his eyes set on catching Ducati, his team-mate Acosta has set goals disclosing where he can improve on race weekends.
The 20-year-old perceived his debut season as a learning experience to adapt to MotoGP itself but believes there are two areas where he is lacking.
Speaking at the livery unveiling, Acosta stated: “For sure, 2024 was a good year, and we still have some goals that we keep in the pocket.
“I learned how to control a race, and how to adapt to MotoGP. It was a dream come true coming to the factory team after being in Moto3 and Moto2.
“Also having Brad as a teammate and helping develop the bike will be a very good point. It will help that he has a lot of experience in the class and I think we will make a good match together.
“The two main important points for 2025 will be the qualifying and then the first few laps of the race.
“Last year we saw that we had pace to fight for podiums or wins but we were struggling during qualifying.
“So, these two points will be the most important things to improve during this season.”
Acosta believes his elusive first win is coming despite multiple near misses, especially where he claimed his maiden pole position at Motegi.
He admits that his debut year has made him more measured and composed, as he enters the factory team and has a larger team surrounding him.
“For sure in the end, this is the change that I was fighting or looking for,” he said to Crash.net.
“In the end, there were many times this season that we were looking maybe to achieve this first win because we were fighting many times for podiums.
“It’s true that maybe now I am a little bit more calm with experience to make a big change also in the way I’m thinking.
“For sure, I’m more calm than last year and I cannot have a better group of people around me, from the mechanics to the engineers, just from the media.
“Now the key will be to be calm and it will arrive soon.”
