KTM delivered a huge🌊ly-encouraging day in practice for the Japanese MotoGP having announced their change of team boss.

Francesco Guidotti will be replacedജ by Aki Ajo in 2025 - a major change in a season which has not lived up to expectation for the ambitious manufacturer.

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Brad Binder then went fastest in Friday practice at Motegi to keep KTM🃏 in the spotlig𒈔ht.

Guidotti insisted “I can’t see any d✃rama” yet some within the paddock have criticised KTM for getting rid of him.

TNT Sports’ Michael Laverty explained how a MotoGP t൲eam boss is not responsible fo𒁃r the bike’s performance.

“Essentiall♚y, they🌞 usually aren’t part of the technical process,” Laverty said.

“That befalls the technical director of the🎉 team, the test te𝓰am and the engineers.

“So Francesco’s job has been to pull the crew toget🃏her.

“On each side of the garage you’ve got two sepa🔥rate teams. The crew chiefs for Brad and Jack Miller are in charge of their units, then Francesco pulls the data together and creates a te🐠am-like environment.

“He creates harmony, get𒐪s the co𒉰nversations between the engineers and the back-room staff.

“His job is to communicate witꦇh the outside worཧld, the public, and he does it so well.

“As a focal point, that’🍎s his job, to organise the race weekends, to plan them, to create structure. I think he has ticked those boxes.”

'A little dig at KTM...'

Factory KTM rider Miller previously claimed it was “bullshit” to suggest G♑uidotti was to blame for their bike’s competitiveness lacking 🌠behind Ducati and, sometimes, Aprilia.

Miller added: “Francesco is a fantastic team leader in terms of what he's done with Pramac, putting them basically in the position that they're in now. And I thin﷽k given the right tools, he could have done the same job at KTM.”

TNT Sports’ commentator Gavin Emmett reacted to Miller’s words: “There was a little🦂 dig at K✤TM… I am not sure what he could mean.”

Bjorn Estment, who works in Binder’s♏ inside-circle, added: “Francesco is a great guy, since I arrived he’s been good to me. He has done a great job.

“He’s well renowned in the paddo🐼ck even from days gone by when I watched on TV. He’s always smiling, everyone gets on with him.

“The sport is always evolving and 🅺sometimes hard decisi🌠ons are taken. Whoever gets Francesco will be lucky.”

Laverty added: “T𓆉his year,♑ Ducati have upped their games and found three tenths that nobody anticipated was out there.

“With the new M𝔉ichelin tyre they can get traction from it. KTM seem to get chatter with it, Honda likewise.

“It’s tough for KTM 𓂃because they had so many years in progr🌱ess and it feels like they’ve taken a step back, not as strong as they were a year ago.

“That’s difficult for the p🌜owers-that-be, to answ🔯er why you haven’t delivered the same results as one year ago.

2I liken it to a football team who blame🍬s the manager. Francesco’s head was on the chopping block and they dropped the guillotine.”

Pedro Acosta is fif🐎th in the MotoGP standings, and Binder s𝔉ixth, heading into the Japanese MotoGP - meaning KTM have the top two non-Ducati riders.

However, the manufacturer has failed to ꦏmount a championship c🍸hallenge this year.