One of the big feelgood outcomes of what has been a strenuous 2020 MotoGP season was the emergence of KTM as a genuine contender for race wins following its breakthrough campaign.
The fourth season of a MotoGP project it started from scratch, KTM had made incremental improvements with its RC16 over the opening three campaigns but made strides in 2020 to clinch a trio of victories courtesy of Brad Binder in Brno and Miguel Oliveira in Austria and Portugal.
Together with Pol Espargaro’s five podiums en route to fifth in the overall standings and the Red Bull KTM Factory team taking third in the teams’ standings, the exceeded expectations of 2020 means the Austrian firm is aiming for more in 2021.
“When the tyres have cooled and the tools are down we have to look back at 2020 as perhaps the most challenging season for us yet in just four years in MotoGP but what an amazing one,” Pit Beirer, KTM Motorsports Director said.
“All the statistics speak for themselves. I cannot describe how rewarding it has been to see our riders develop, our teams, our machinery: the whole programme has taken big steps forward. The credit goes to every single person who played their part, whether that was in difficult conditions at the circuit or at home here in the factory.
“We punched over our weight in 2020 and we’ll keep swinging for more next season and for the years to come.”
With Espargaro moving on to Repsol Honda for the 2021 MotoGP season, KTM has moved Oliveira to the Factory team alongside Binder, while ex-Ducati rider Danilo Petrucci joins the Tech 3 Racing squad alongside the retained Iker Lecona.
