Another qualifying session looked far from him when Brad Binder crashed out of Q1, but MotoGP researcher Neil Hodgson wasn’t the only one lacking confidence in their one-lap pace.
The South African rider will start from P17 in the Sprint race and the Grand Prix, showing a clear gap between him and himself with his performance in a one-lap shootout. KTM flag bearer, Pedro Acosta.
Brad Binder falls to stop another tragedy Q1
binding Acosta has yet to overtake the young Murcian rider as he was given a factory ride by KTM last year. A very telling statistic, especially considering the qualifying session at Balaton Park was the 30th time Acosta had led his more experienced teammate.
Binder’s lack of confidence to qualify It’s been a worrying trend for a long time now, but Neil Hodgson saw another rider suffer the same problem in their own disappointing results at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Neil Hodgson was confused by the form of Franco Morbidelli at the Hungarian Grand Prix
Season TNT Sports At Balaton Park, MotoGP pundit coverage of qualifying Neil Hodgson Attention has been drawn to another rider who has struggled since the start of the current campaign: Franco Morbidelli.
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The Italian rider is currently the lowest ranked Ducati rider in the MotoGP standings, currently sitting 96 points adrift. VR46 Teammate Fabio D’Giantantonio. His P19 grid slot for the Hungarian GP won’t help his case either.
“Morbidelli hasn’t really arrived this weekend,” Hodgson told viewers of British broadcasters, before adding, “Yesterday, he was too far. For him, he was riding in the 20th. I put my eyes on him and said, ‘What is he doing?’
The 31-year-old is one of a group of 2026 riders yet to ride for next year’s campaign, Hodgson has previously commented. Morbidelli is eyeing a full-time holiday in 2027. Instead.
As for the reason, the MotoGP expert nailed it down to a lack of confidence, comparing Morbidelli’s situation to what Binder is now facing at the factory KTM outfit.
“Morbidelli is in the same situation as I am about Binder,” he continued. “He’s riding around, he’s lost a bit of confidence, and the other riders on the Ducatis are doing a better job than him.
“If you’re Morbidelli, you’re watching your teammate destroy it.”
Unfortunately for Morbidelli, di Giannantonio’s one-lap pace was strong again at Balaton Park, with the leader VR46 ace the P4 grid slot for the Hungarian GP.
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