BASTIANINI’S TRACKHOUSE MOVE HIGHLIGHTS BRAD BINDER’S OUTGOING STATUS

Enea Bastianini’s confirmed move to Trackhouse next season has reignited debate about how MotoGP’s silly-season decisions are made, especially when comparing his recent form with Brad Binder’s. With the championship currently led by others, Bastianini sits in 12th with 76 points, while Binder is just behind on 72. The two riders have been close in the standings and, crucially, they have been doing it on the same bike, yet their futures are heading in opposite directions: Bastianini is set to stay in MotoGP in 2027, while Binder is scheduled to leave the series at the end of this season.

The reporting highlights that Binder’s results have not lagged behind Bastianini’s, even though Binder is the one losing his MotoGP place. This season, Binder has been forced to retire in two races, but he has still scored points in every race he has finished. His best result so far has been seventh. Bastianini, riding for Tech3, has also had retirements—three this year—but he has likewise scored points in each race where he has finished, with a best of sixth. On the same machinery, their points gap is only four, reinforcing the idea that Binder has been competitive relative to the rider who is being promoted.

The comparison becomes even more pointed when looking at last year. While both were on the same bike, Binder outperformed Bastianini in the championship, finishing 11th versus Bastianini’s 14th. The sources also note that this pattern of Binder matching or exceeding Bastianini’s output wasn’t limited to their current team situation. Over the four years Bastianini spent across Ducati factory and satellite setups, his championship finishes were 11th, 3rd, 15th, and 4th. In that same span, Binder’s results were consistently inside the top 10, with finishes of sixth twice, fourth once, and fifth once.

With Binder now set to join World Superbike in 2027—riding for BMW—the question raised is why he wasn’t given a MotoGP option for next year if his recent performances were comparable to, or even stronger than, Bastianini’s. The sources frame it as a difficult-to-reconcile situation: Bastianini has multiple prospects and is moving to Trackhouse after losing an Aprilia factory opportunity to Francesco Bagnaia, while Binder, despite similar on-track competitiveness, is left without a MotoGP seat and instead heads to WSBK.