HODGSON SAYS BINDER’S SILVERSTONE CRASH WAS “FRUSTRATING” AFTER LOOKING PERFECT

Brad Binder’s Friday at the British Grand Prix ended in a crash that left KTM facing another Saturday qualifying hurdle. In the session-ending pre-qualifying practice at Silverstone, Binder looked set to make progress after posting a best lap of 1:57.920, but he went down at Luffield with a quarter of an hour remaining, finishing the timed session down in P18.

Neil Hodgson, speaking on TNT Sports 2, said the moment was especially frustrating because Binder appeared to have everything in place before the bike let go. Hodgson noted that Binder had “perfect track position” and that it was “frustrating” to watch him simply follow his teammate—Pedro Acosta was directly ahead on the road—only for the front to lose grip. In Hodgson’s view, Binder “didn’t [do too much wrong],” adding that he was “on the right line” and that it “looked perfect.” The issue, Hodgson suggested, was a small overuse at the critical point: “Just obviously [used] a fraction, maybe, a little bit too much brake pressure at that point.”

The crash itself came in the long right-hand turn at Luffield, where Binder lost the front of his KTM RC16. At the time of the incident, Acosta was ahead, and Hodgson described the situation as “perfect” for Binder to try to improve his time—until a minor mistake turned into a gravel-trap moment.

Binder’s practice result underlined how tight the field was. He was 0.557s behind Acosta, who recovered from his own earlier crash to top the KTM order on Friday with a 1:57.363. Enea Bastianini was the next KTM rider in P11, posting 1:57.592. Pol Espargaro, standing in for Tech3 as Maverick Viñales misses the British GP due to a shoulder injury, was the only rider slower than Binder, finishing P21 with a personal-best 1:58.322.

While KTM’s Friday narrative was dominated by Binder’s crash, the wider session also featured a major return story. Marco Bezzecchi, back from injury, set a new all-time Silverstone benchmark on the Aprilia RS-GP with a 1:56.280, beating Fabio Quartararo’s previous record of 1:57.233. Bezzecchi’s pace left Acosta 1.083s adrift, and it also placed Aprilia and Ducati at the front of the weekend’s early picture.

For Binder, the immediate consequence is a tougher path through qualifying. With the crash leaving him in P18, he now has to go through Q1 on Saturday. Hodgson’s comments captured the frustration of a rider who had the right setup but still paid for a small error. Binder’s season has already forced him into Q1 repeatedly—he has done so in nine of the first 11 rounds—and he has not yet advanced to Q2 in any race. His best chance so far came at Jerez and Mugello, where he reached the second half of qualifying from Q1, finishing P3 at Jerez (0.925s off the top two) and P4 at Mugello (0.143s off the top two).