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British MotoGP at Silverstone: What caused Jack Miller to say ‘don’t be an idiot’ on the final lap? | MotoGP

British MotoGP at Silverstone: What caused Jack Miller to say 'don't be an idiot' on the final lap? | MotoGP

Miller, who spent the entire Grand Prix inside the top three positions, was arguably the fastest Ducati rider despite Francesco Bagnaia ultimately winning his fourth MotoGP race in the last seven rounds.

Faster than his team-mate at the beginning and end, it was the middle part of the Grand Prix where Bagnaia took advantage of finding more performance.

Although he lost out to Maverick Vinales with three laps remaining, Miller closed in on the top two during the final lap as he began lining up a move on the Aprilia rider. But after seeing Vinales protect the inside heading into ‘Brooklands’ [turn 16]Miller instead settled for third.

Speaking to BT Sport post-race, Miller said: “I ran out of steam towards the end. I started suffering a little bit with the front end. When Pecco came past I thought: ‘Alright, I’ll settle in here for a bit’. I felt stronger than him for the majority of the race but I wasn’t going to put anything silly on. We were 1-2 [at the time] so there was no need.

“Six laps from the end, I started losing the front massively. Then I used the rear to finish the corner off. Then I started losing the rear everywhere. Honestly, I was panicking with three to go!

“On the second-last lap, I calmed down and understood how I could ride around the issues that I was having. I had a big kick on the chicane on the back straight, lost all my drive, and waited for three bikes to come past!

“Every time I checked the TV in the second-last corner, there were 15 bikes on the screen, all on the same corner that I was in! I found a bit more speed on the last lap so I was annoyed.

“I thought about having a look-in at Maverick [Vinales]on the last chicane where I looked at Aleix [Espargaro] last year, but he was so protective. I thought ‘don’t be an idiot, just bring it home!’

“I was panicking because, at Turn 1 and Turn 12, you hear bikes! It’s like a guy is on the inside of you! I don’t know what it is, with the walls and echoes!”

Silverstone ‘one of the best’ MotoGP circuits in the world, says Miller

Silverstone played host to the second closest top ten finish in MotoGP history on Sunday, proving once again that this year’s field is closer than ever.

However, it’s not just the performance throughout the grid that’s making the racing close in 2022, as Miller also believes the right track can play a big part in how well you can race one-another.

“I can’t speak highly enough about it [Silverstone]. It’s one of the best in the world,” said Miller when asked how highly he rates the British venue.

“It’s a proper old school Grand Prix track, long lap and has a lot of different elements. That’s why you see the top ten so close together.

“It shows the depth of the field but it also shows the race track because even riding with some of the Suzukis in the race or even the Aprilia at the back end, you can see the different lines. It makes for great racing so for sure , it’s a great circuit.”

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MotoGP Silverstone: Jack Miller ‘can’t feel anything’ with new aero, grateful not to be ‘locked out’… | MotoGP

MotoGP Silverstone: Jack Miller 'can't feel anything' with new aero, grateful not to be 'locked out'... | MotoGP

Making headlines throughout the British MotoGP at Silverstone has been Ducati’s new ‘Stegosaurus-like’ aero package on the rear of its bikes.

Whether it’s the factory team, Pramac, Gresini or the Mooney VR46 outfit, Ducati has given all of their riders the chance to test the new aero package.

And while Enea Bastianini claimed it was helping him under braking following Friday practice, Miller is unconvinced after stating he feels ‘no benefit’.

Miller said: “I don’t know about benefit. It’s definitely not the easiest thing on the eye but they seem to be happy with it. I mean, I’m the donkey that sits on the bike.

“In my honest opinion I can’t feel anything. Except I just have to watch it with my leg when I put my leg over the bike. I can’t feel anything while riding. We need to analyze it more obviously, but for the moment nothing.”

When asked if he wanted to test the new wings after they first appeared on Bastianini’s Gresini Ducati and Jorge Martin’s Pramac machine, Miller stated: “They [just] gave it to me.”

While it might not be making a difference to the feeling he has aboard his GP-22 machine, Miller is just glad to be receiving parts and not being ‘locked out’ of data, something that has happened before when riders have agreed to join another team following the current season.

“At the end of the day they were straight up with me,” said Miller when talking about Ducati providing him with the same treatment as all its other riders. “Once I told them [I was leaving] we had this discussion and as you say, it’s very unusual for a factory to give a rider updates especially when the rider is leaving.

“But they’ve been 100% honest with me throughout the whole lot and also you see what they do with all the bikes they have on the grid.

“They give them the maximum that they can. It’s in Ducati’s DNA and it’s a massive thing from Gigi [Dall’Igna] and they are really pushing for that.

“On that side of things I greatly appreciate it because there is nothing worse than not getting updates or being locked out of data etc. It’s nice to have that, for sure.”

Zarco ready for Silverstone ‘present’ – can he take his first MotoGP win?

Starting alongside Miller on the front row for Sunday’s Grand Prix will be Johann Zarco after the French rider secured pole with a new lap record.

Nearly a tenth clear of Maverick Vinales, Zarco’s main challengers for victory are potentially all on the second row as Fabio Quartararo will start directly ahead of Francesco Bagnaia and Aleix Espargaro.

Still bidding for his first win in MotoGP, Zarco said ‘why not’ at the prospect of taking home the spoils at Silverstone.

“From Friday I’ve been quite fast and I was able to build a good step from Friday to Saturday. It means that I have more chances than usual to think about the victory.” added the two-time Moto2 champion.

“The pole position was a good confirmation and also the pace in FP4 was quite good. Why not hope for this victory.

“I will not fully focus on it [to avoid] making any mistakes. Let’s see how the others will be in the race. I hope I will get this advantage with the hard rear and get this nice present at the end.”

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Drink driving incident won’t distract Bagnaia

Drink driving incident won't distract Bagnaia

The Ducati star failed a breathalyser test after crashing a road car while on his way home from a party in Ibiza, early last month.

Thursday at Silverstone was the first time the Italian had been back in the MotoGP paddock since the incident, for which Spanish media predicted he could face a driving ban of between one and four years.

“I already said on my social [media] channels what I think. Three-four weeks have now passed [and so] it’s not something that can compromise my mindset for a race [weekend],” Bagnaia said.

“It was a mistake, an error that I made. Unfortunately, it’s something that can happen. I really made a mistake. I understand [that],” I added.

When Bagnaia was then pressed on whether he would have accepted receiving a penalty from MotoGP or Ducati for the incident, team-mate Jack Miller – also present in the press conference – stepped in to close down the questioning.

“For what?” Miller said. “It’s just bringing up negativity and we don’t need to bring it up.

“He said what he had to say and that’s it.”

Bagnaia’s only previous words on the matter, delivered via social media the morning after the incident, were: “Last night I was in Ibiza with my friends for a party during this break from MotoGP.

“We celebrated and toasted together for my victory at the Dutch GP.

“As I was leaving the disco at 3am I was facing a roundabout when I ended up with the front wheels in a ditch, without involving other vehicles or people.

“However, the alcohol test carried out by the police found that the blood alcohol level was higher than what is allowed by Spanish law.

“I am sorry for what happened; I am practically a non-drinker, and it was a serious carelessness which should not have happened.

“I apologize to everyone, and I can assure you that I have learned my lesson.

“Never get behind the wheel after drinking alcohol. Thank you.”

Bagnaia, who has three wins and three DNFs in the last six races, starts this weekend’s race sitting fourth in the world championship, 66 points behind Fabio Quartararo.

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