Marco Bezzecchi
Jack Miller will start the British Grand Prix from sixth place after an impressive qualifying showing. It’s Miller’s best qualifying performance since the opening round of the season.
Yamaha stablemate Fabio Quartararo took pole position at Silverstone with a new track record of a 1:57.233. Miller was just under nine-tenths shy of that benchmark, but he did outpace factory rider Alex Rins (P12) and teammate Miguel Oliveira, who went out in Q1.
Miller needs a strong weekend after a difficult run. He started the year well, with a P5 in Austin elevating him into the top 10 in the standings.
However, the Australian has logged three straight DNFs since. Miller missed a huge opportunity at Le Mans, going down in conditions where he normally thrives.
Having failed to score in the Sprints during that period either, he’s now slipped to 17th in the championship. That fuelled the background speculation over his MotoGP future.
Neil Hodgson explains why Jack Miller is even better than he was at Ducati
While his Sunday results don’t necessarily reflect it, TNT Sports pundit Neil Hodgson says Miller looks more comfortable than ever on the Yamaha M1.
He spent his first five premier-class seasons on Ducati machinery, first for Pramac (2018-20) and then for the factory team (2021-22). In that spell, he picked up all three of his Grand Prix victories and 21 of his 22 podiums.
Miller then moved to KTM before losing his seat at the end of the second year. Hodgson was concerned the Yamaha wouldn’t play to his strengths, but he’s been proven wrong.
“He looks better on this bike than any other bike,” he remarked. “I never thought that would really suit him. He looks better than he did on the Ducati even.”
Fabio Quartararo’s praise for Jack Miller after impressive British Grand Prix showing
Having taken a gamble at the end of the 2024 silly season, Pramac gave Miller a one-year contract. It’s almost inevitable that talk over his future has restarted early in the year.
Fortunately, Yamaha have spoken positively about Miller behind the scenes, particularly his contribution to development. Quartararo’s run of three straight poles shows that they’re well on track as they eye a return to the front.
What’s more, Miller is receiving protection from Dorna. They value the presence of an Australian rider on the grid, though they are about to sell to Liberty Media.
Quartararo is delighted by Miller’s progress after he joined the factory duo in Q2. He ‘really likes’ seeing him get ‘closer and closer’ to Ducati, offering Yamaha plenty of useful data.
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