KTM’s Brutal Admission After Dismal 2024 As They Hire New Team Manager

Saajan Jogia | Jan 7, 2025

Apr 12, 2024; Austin, TX, USA; Brad Binder (33) of South Africa and Red Bull KTM Factory Racing during practice for the MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas at Circuit of The Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

KTM motorsport director Pit Beirer has opened up on hiring Aki Ajo as its new MotoGP team manager for 2025, replacing Francesco Guidotti. This change follows two consecutive seasons without a Grand Prix victory, with 2024 marking a particularly challenging year as the team failed to secure wins in both Grand Prix and Sprint events.

Beirer explained that Ajo's selection as KTM's new team manager was based on his proven success with riders in Moto3 and Moto2, where he has led KTM's official teams since 2012 and 2017, respectively, showcasing his expertise in developing talent in the intermediate and lightweight classes. Speaking to MotoGP.com, as reported by Crash.net, he said:

“I don’t want to sound terrible by saying this, but I’m really happy that Francesco [Guidotti] will leave KTM as a friend.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t get the success we wanted for many small reasons.”

He added:

“We also made the decision for Aki [Ajo] because he’s a man who works really closely with the riders, and I think he can give them great advice on what to do on the track.

“Don’t get me wrong, we don’t think Aki is coming in and solving all our problems, but if we share the missing pieces – let’s say, we’ll build a better machine at home, and the riders will bring everything to the table at the right time – it’s not just about the riders.

“It’s also about team planning: when to go out for qualifying, when to put in the lap time, and all those organizational aspects.

“We believe that Aki is maybe one of the strongest in this area, and he’s always had the ability to develop champions for us.

“Both of these guys (Brad Binder and Pedro Acosta) know him very well and are looking forward to working with him. He made them champions before, so we trust Aki to give us that extra bit in the fight for the last tenths-of-a-second we need.”

Beirer reflected on the year that went by, which was marked by several ups and downs, admitting that the team's expectations were higher from both riders, though KTM finished second in the Constructors' Championship. He said:

“I have to be honest, our expectations have been a bit higher, especially for Brad [Binder] and Jack [Miller], but we’ve had our ups and downs. We had a really difficult summer, but at least we managed to stabilize the situation and get some decent results.

“Looking back now, we’ve had six [Sprint] podiums on Saturday and six [Grand Prix podiums] on Sunday. We’re the second-best manufacturer, so that’s great.

“But, of course, we thought we’d be closer to the Ducati guys, who have done another fantastic job this year. We have to congratulate them for what they’re doing out there, but we still keep fighting, charging, and learning.

“We feel we’re getting closer again and have received some really good feedback from Brad and Pedro [Acosta] lately.

“But I still want to look at the glass as half full, not half empty, and I feel we’re in a good position from a sporting perspective looking towards next season, with the new riders on board. We’ve learned a lot more about our bike in the past few weeks, and that’s important.”