Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 rider achieves his best result of the year, gaining 10 places in the race.

Darryn Binder saved the best version for last in the 22-lap Dutch GP this Sunday. The South African put in his best performance of 2018 with a great fightback, finishing with him taking seventh place. The Red Bull KTM Ajo rider’s good start allowed him to latch onto the second group and never lose touch.

Starting from seventeenth position on the grid, Binder had a difficult challenge ahead of him. A good start helped him gain four places in the first sector and six at the end of the opening lap. The lead group were very fast and from the early stages the South African was in the second group, with seven other riders in the fight for the sixth place. Crashes on the last two laps and several overtaking moves left Binder in seventh position.

Thanks to this result, Binder claims further points after the disappointing race in Barcelona a fortnight ago. He now has 20 points and is twentieth in the overall standings. The next Moto3 race takes place in two weeks’ time in Germany –on July 15th.

Results (Race)
1. Jorge Martin (Honda) 37:56.485
2. Aron Canet (Honda) +0.665
3. Enea Bastianini (Honda) +0.718
4. Jaume Masia (KTM) +10.842
5. Jakub Kornfeil (KTM) +10.953
7. Darryn Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) +11.343

Moto3 World Championship Standing 2018
1. Jorge Martin (Honda) 105 points
2. Marco Bezzecchi (KTM) 103 points
3. Fabio Di Giannantonio (Honda) 91 points
4. Enea Bastianini (Honda) 84 points
5. Aron Canet (Honda) 81 points
20. Darryn Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 20 points

Aki Ajo – Team Manager
“Today’s Moto3’s race marked a good step forward; I’m happy about the final result of the race. Darryn [Binder] had a really good performance. Throughout the year he has made some mistakes in the race but today he managed the situation well. He rode in a group and chose a good strategy. I hope this seventh place gives him more confidence for the next few rounds and that we also improve during practice sessions. It was a good race.”

40 DARRYN BINDER
“The bike has worked well all weekend. I was just struggling to be consistent and fast for several consecutive laps. I knew that when I started the race I could have a good pace, so when the lights went out I tried to gain as many places as possible. I enjoyed a good fight; I was in the group that finally peaked for fifth place, and in the end I managed to finish seventh. I felt strong today. If at the next few GPs we can find a better pace on Friday and improve our result in Saturday qualifying, then I’m sure that we can fight for the top positions on Sundays. I’m happy with today’s result. When you fight in groups, you always want to cross the line first in that group, but considering how things have been going, little steps forward like this are better than nothing. I’ll settle for seventh place here to target the Top 5 next time.”