Marco Bezzecchi
Despite Jack Miller coming off the back of his worst MotoGP season in recent years, Yamaha bosses don’t want him to even ‘think about’ securing strong results.
The 2025 premier class campaign marked Jack Miller’s first season on Yamaha machinery, making him one of the most well-rounded riders on the grid in terms of experience.
He has now served four of the five constructors on the grid, and Miller is using that experience to aid Yamaha’s development efforts ahead of the V4-powered M1’s first full season of racing.
The Japanese constructor put their full faith in the Australian rider during negotiations between the two parties over an extension to Miller’s initial one-year contract with Pramac Racing.
After it had been announced that Toprak Razgatlioglu would be making the switch from World Superbikes to MotoGP with the Italian team, Miller was deemed to be a more valuable asset to the team than Miguel Oliveira, despite the fact that the Portuguese had a contract for 2026.
- READ MORE: Mick Doohan said ‘a lot of people’ were wrong about Jack Miller when he first moved to MotoGP
Will Yamaha return to winning ways with a V4 engine in 2026?
The 2026 season may already be a ‘write off’ for Jack Miller before it’s even begun
During a recent edition of The Race MotoGP podcast, journalist Simon Patterson detailed the plan that Yamaha are expected to make with their factory and satellite team during the upcoming campaign.
He said, “I’m still completely convinced that 2026 is all about learning MotoGP for Toprak and that no one should be expecting anything of him as long as he’s still riding a motorbike on Michelin tyres.
“And I think Jack Miller is going to find that so much of his 2026 season is devoted entirely to development work on a brand new V4 Yamaha.
“He’s not even going to think about results unless it’s damp on a Saturday morning and he can stick in a surprising qualifying performance.
“I think that you almost have to write off Pramac for 2026 because it’s such a building year for the team and for Yamaha.”
Yamaha boss Paolo Pavesio believes that Miller’s poor 2025 can be attributed to his lack of a reference point during the season.
Oliveira missed several rounds through injury and was a lot more off the pace than the Australian when he was fit enough to undertake his racing duties.
Unfortunately, if Patterson’s words come to fruition and 2026 is no better for the four-time Grand Prix winner, he may find himself losing his seat on the grid.
- READ MORE: Jack Miller already has competition from ‘impressive’ young rider for 2027 Pramac MotoGP seat
Where do you think Jack Miller will be racing in 2027?
The upcoming MotoGP season could be Jack Miller’s final campaign in the premier class
According to a recent report, Miller is one of four riders whose careers are in jeopardy ahead of the upcoming term.
With a three-time world champion occupying the seat next to him as a rookie in MotoGP, falling behind Razgatlioglu could spell danger for the Australian’s hopes of retaining his seat in the category’s new era of regulations.
If that is to be the case, Miller’s likeliest opportunity to remain as a professional motorcycle rider would be in a test role at Yamaha, as they will be developing a smaller version of the V4 in line with the new ruleset.
It has also been reported that Pramac have already identified a replacement for Miller if they do opt to move on from the 30-year-old in a full-time role.
He’s already starting the season off on the back foot, so it seems as if the fan-favourite is looking at a mountain to climb if he wants to continue his active riding career.
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