‘Maybe he is a bit sensitive’ Binder hits back at Rossi criticism

Brad Binder has responded to Valentino Rossi’s words of ‘riders’ like Binder ‘not caring about their rivals in races’.

The South African endured another tough day for KTM on the opening practice day ahead of Sunday’s Doha MotoGP Grand Prix. 

However, speaking after his day on track, one of the discussion points was centered around his race battle last weekend against Rossi, who was not happy with Binder following their second moment on track following contact in Austria last season. 

Rossi spoke earlier in the week about the incident saying ‘respect’ was missing from certain riders. 

However, Binder was quick to say that it was a non issue for him as there was no contact during the overtake. 

"I’ve had two moments with him. One time in Austria we both went completely off the track which is understandable so I think a second time is normal to be upset!," said Binder. 

"But to be fair I didn’t touch him at all. Maybe he is a bit sensitive. I don’t feel that I did anything wrong. 

"I went in next to him. He released the brake and he wanted to close the line, I released the brake too, end of story."

It’s been a tough start to the 2021 season so far for KTM with the bike not suiting the Losail circuit at all. 

And while the overall position doesn’t look good, Binder is feeling like the bike is more competitive this weekend. 

The former Moto3 champion said: "It is definitely a bit more positive. All the guys did a good job this week and I feel that my bike is working better. 

"I feel a lot more confident with some of the changes they have made."

Binder had a few issues pop up late on which affected his attempts to get into the top ten, with debris getting stuck in one of his tyres. 

"Problems were out of our control in FP2 and it was like riding on ice. My other tyre had a chunk in it! It was very weird. We hope it will be better next time," added Binder.

"I really felt ready to do a good job but those issues were out of our control and that really hurt me, or at least my chances of trying to get into Q2."