"KTM is saved!", many outlets proclaimed a few short weeks ago when the Austrian insolvency courts stated that the company, its debtors, and its shareholders had come to an agreement on how to move forward after basically declaring bankruptcy last year. They were saved! Production is set to resume. And the company's beleaguered CEO, the man who made many of the financially bad decisions, was out.
But so many pundits, commenters, and folks outside the industry saw this as a win for the manufacturer. And, by and large, it is. But there were caveats to that win. KTM still had to pay a lot of money to its creditors. It had to excise the demon that is its year's worth of inventory sitting on pissed-off dealerships' lots. It needed to figure out what the hell it was going to do with all its racing teams—the answer seemingly being it would be cutting, as well as ending all funding to any championship it was previously involved in.
KTM had a lot of work to do to truly be "saved."
So when I read the full-page ad the company took out in the Austrian newspaper Kronen Zeitung, with the headline that reads "Passion Never Goes Bankrupt," I couldn't help but question whether or not we should trust the brand at this point? I mean, throughout this whole saga, there's only been one constant. KTM will proclaim it's fine and then, a week or less later, shit hits the fan.
Is this another case of that?
The ad is attributed to the brand's new CEO Gottfried Neumeister, who states, "Passion never goes bankrupt. We were too fast and crashed out of the corner. But we’re getting back on our feet. The race goes on. The race for the future. The truth is, when your back is against the wall, there’s only one direction… forward! It’s probably fate that we’re a company that builds vehicles without reverse gear."
He added, "READY TO RACE isn’t just a slogan. It’s our inner drive. Our riders know that, if you fall, you have to get back on the bike as quickly as possible. That’s exactly what we have to do now. Forward, with courage, passion, and the same unshakable spirit that has always defined KTM. The road won’t be easy, but it never has been. KTM motorcycles were built for exactly this, overcoming hurdles, being successful on long journeys, achieving goals. No matter the condition. We’re back and have learned from our mistakes. This also means that we listen more than ever to the people who accompany us. Above all, to our clients and our employees. We shouldn’t only reinvent KTM for ourselves, but together with you. We’ll have more transparency in the future."
Now, all of this is a lovely sentiment. And it's the sort of thing that you'd hope goes out to the employees still working at KTM. But it glosses over a lot of the "hurdles" and "mistakes" that led KTM to the position it's currently in. Likewise, for a long time before everything went public, KTM vehemently denied any allegations of an issue with the viability of the business. So the concept of "transparency" is harder to believe.
When there were only murmurs of discontent, the brand's executives highlighted how a few select small to minuscule YouTubers were out of their minds and didn't have any idea of the reality of the situation. When RideApart reported that the company was likely leaving MotoGP, we were told by both KTM and MotoGP boss Pit Beirer that that was false, only for a week later for both parties to confirm they'd leave in 2026. Or when they had to pause the development of the race bike, which it denied, then confirmed, but said that was only because the last bike was so good. That's also not the case if you talk to its riders, one of which continues to be in this same spotlight.
And that case of denial, obfuscation, and then the truth making its way to see the light of day has continued even until last week, as KTM has continually denied that MotoGP phenom Pedro Acosta was unhappy with the brand and this year's race bike after rumors swirled around him going to Ducati next year. But a few days ago, Acosta's manager essentially confirmed the rider ain't happy and they're looking elsewhere.
Furthermore, as I mentioned prior, KTM still has a lot to overcome. The brand still has to pay a whopping $630 million to its creditors by May 25th. It still has to resume production, though a number of its hard real estate assets have been sold, and it's unclear how that'll affect production. It has to find suppliers that'll supply it with parts, even after not paying its bills to other suppliers for so long. It has to deliver on reducing inventory on showroom floors, all while producing model year 2025 bikes it's promised—like the 1390s and the new 990 RC R—though the company seems reticent in having a fire sale on its existing stock, only really offering warranty extensions. However, that might be beneficial given its track record with component failure and, again, basically lying to its customers and the press.
Neumeister's ad ends with the line, "To everyone who doubted us… Watch us!" But don't worry, we will.
