Brad Binder on cheating death amid crash carnage

The South African was right behind Johann Zarco's Ducati when it collided with Franco Morbidelli's Yamaha with the riders racing at full throttle. Zarco and Morbidelli were sent flying, while their bikes carried on, becoming potentially lethal projectiles.That both motorcycles missed hitting Yamaha's Valentino Rossi and Maverick Viñales was as miraculous as it was extraordinary. Rossi later admitted that the "saint of motorcyclists" must have been watching over him and his teammate."I think the luckiest guy in the world right now is Valentino Rossi," Binder told CNN Sport. The 25-year-old KTM rider shudders when considering what might have happened."Honestly I prefer not to even think about," he admits. "You know the bikes are probably still going at more than 200 kph, and a bike weighing in at 185kgs flying at close to 200 kph, if that hits somebody, I think we all know how that might end." Remarkably both Zarco and Morbidelli were able to walk away from the incident, though the Ducati rider has since told L'Equipe that he will undergo surgery for a fractured wrist later this week. Binder says the risks of racing are always there."It's a danger that everybody knows, that we really just try to keep in the back of our minds and not think about. Unfortunately, the only way to do this job is to approach things in that way. If you're worried about the risks and the things that could happen, I don't think you could ever do this job for a living." READ: Maverick Vinales — Top Gun by name, top rider by nature

Rollercoaster week

Binder finished fourth after the red-flagged race eventually restarted, an impressive achievement from 17th on the grid. It capped the end of a rollercoaster week for the man born in Potchefstroom, in South Africa's North West province.Just seven days earlier, Binder became the first ever South African to win a premier class race, at the Czech Republic GP in Brno, riding in only his third MotoGP.The victory was also KTM's first ever MotoGP victory, and Binder was the first rookie to win a race since Marc Marquez's maiden win at the GP of the Americas in 2013."It's been absolutely fantastic," he says. "I don't think we quite expected it so soon, especially in only my third grand prix. It was honestly a dream come true, something that you work towards getting right your entire career as a motorcycle racer." READ: The power behind Marquez's MotoGP throne

Rugby and cricket

Binder and his family moved to Krugersdorp, just outside Johannesburg, when he was 10 years old. He admits that motorsport is not something typically associated with South Africa."For sure, when you think of sport and South Africa you think of rugby and cricket or something like that," he said."When I was younger and I started racing in South Africa it was a lot more busy, a lot of racing was going on there and a lot of support, but things died off a bit, but it is slowly coming back."The rookie's success has been well-received at home. "It's really cool, because the news really blew up at home," he says. "I must say, South Africans are always fantastic at backing anyone in sports, and especially their own, so it's been great to see all the support I've had." READ: Will 2020 be Rossi's final season in MotoGP?Covid-19 has presented an extra challenge for Binder, and his younger brother Darryn, who competes in the Moto3 class."It's really difficult at the moment with South Africa's borders being closed," Binder explains."It's nearly impossible for us to go home. After this weekend's race we have two weeks off and it would have been great to have shot home and caught up with friends and family for a week and come back. But unfortunately, the way things are at the moment, we'll just be staying here."He admits to being a little homesick."South Africa in general is an amazing place, for sure. The main thing about South Africa, I don't really know how to explain it, it's just home, you know? It's that place that I go to and I know exactly how everything works."It's just amazing to go back and go to the places where I grew up and see all your friends and stuff, the stuff I've been doing my whole life. It's all those things. I hope everything gets back to normal soon."Life on the road is, however, nothing new for the Binder brothers."We've both been spending most of our time in Europe and doing this together since 2014," he says.The older Binder has been racing in Europe since 2011, winning the MotRead More – Source

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