Jack Miller once revealed how close he was to leaving MotoGP after annoying Yamaha with his comments

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Jack Miller has had an uncertain couple of years in MotoGP recently, and the Pramac star has previously detailed how close he was to leaving the grid at the end of the 2024 season.

Jack Miller is one of the most well-versed riders on the MotoGP grid, having served stints at four of the five constructors who are currently on the grid.

Having started his premier class career at Honda in 2015, his first tenure at Pramac came in 2018 when they were a satellite team of Ducati’s.

A call-up to the factory Ducati team followed, and Miller has previously disclosed how he doesn’t miss that ride in hindsight.

A factory ride with KTM came after his time in Borgo Panigale. However, his stint with the Austrian constructor was plagued by a chatter issue that Miller was grateful not to have experienced atop his current bike at Yamaha.

• READ MORE: Pramac rider Jack Miller rules out doing one ‘difficult’ thing when he retires from MotoGP

Jack Miller detailed how close he was to leaving MotoGP at the end of 2024

In an appearance on the Gypsy Tales podcast in March 2025, the Australian fan favourite detailed how close he was to not securing a ride in MotoGP after being shown the door from KTM at the end of 2024 in favour of Pedro Acosta.

Asked how close he was to leaving the grid altogether, Miller replied, “Oh, it was like all bar done, honestly.”

Miller then elaborated on the events that unfolded, and highlighted how Yamaha chief Paolo Pavesio ended up saving his career, adding, “Absolutely. You try and find out what’s going on and what seats are available.

“Who’s willing to have you and who wants to take you on, and it wasn’t looking good, put it that way.

“My a— got saved by Paolo essentially, because I said some things that I probably shouldn’t have said, just being a d——-. Me being me, just being sarcastic and stupid.

“Yamaha weren’t that pleased with my attitude. So they were kind of off me at that point, and it was something that could have been cleared up very easily, and it was eventually.

“I didn’t know it was an issue, and I didn’t know I’d done wrong, essentially, but you never do when you’re being a sarcastic idiot, you know?”

• READ MORE: Jack Miller shares how Yamaha’s V4 engine reminds him of his time at Ducati

Jack Miller is now an integral part of the Yamaha stable as they ready their V4-powered bike for 2026

As ironic as it sounds, Miller’s comments were actually the reason why Yamaha decided to retain him at Pramac into the upcoming 2026 MotoGP season.

Miller was competing against Miguel Oliveira for the final seat alongside Toprak Razgatlioglu at the Italian team for next year, and it is understood that his experience atop V4-powered bikes turned out to be the deciding factor.

Yamaha are currently in development of their new M1 for next season, having run with the inline-four engine layout since 2002.

Miller’s ‘golden’ feedback has become an integral part of Yamaha’s plans for the future, and the Australian signed an extension to his previous contract in September.