Jack Miller Drops Bombshell On Yamaha's MotoGP Progress - 'They're Busting Their A*se'

Saajan Jogia | 19 Hours Ago

Apr 12, 2024; Austin, TX, USA; Fabio Quartararo (20) of France and Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP during practice for the MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas at Circuit of The Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Pramac Yamaha, the newest team on the MotoGP grid, will switch from Ducati to Yamaha machinery in 2025, a move strengthened by the addition of seasoned riders Jack Miller and Miguel Oliveira. Their experience not only offers a new direction in their careers but also provides Yamaha with the advantage of doubling its bikes and data on the grid. Miller, who moved from KTM, offered an insight into Yamaha's development of its YZR-M1 MotoGP bike, saying the people working to make it competitive again are "busting their a*se."

Speaking ahead of his Yamaha M1 outing in Barcelona last November, still under contract with KTM at the time, refrained from delving into specifics about Yamaha. However, Miller highlighted the areas of improvement and acknowledged the progress being made to regain competitiveness at the front of the grid. He told Crash.net:

“There's some history behind that motorcycle and the bones of it are great.

“They've had some difficult times in the past couple of years, but when I was starting out in MotoGP that was the bike everyone wanted to be on.

“Rookies were also getting on it and being on the podium, like Zarco, Jonas [Folger], Fabio [Quartararo]. Also Franky [Morbidelli]. That bike was very, very, very strong.

“Yes, they’ve struggled in recent years with the whole aero style and ride-height devices in MotoGP now.

“But I believe they're working really hard to catch up. Even though we’ve only got these ‘add-ons’ [ride height] for a couple more years, they're not sitting on their laurels and saying, ‘we'll be right in 2027’.

“They're busting their arse trying to get there now.

“So I take my hat off to them for that and for putting a second team on the grid again. I think not having four bikes has probably hindered them as well, so that will also be a big step in the right direction.”

Miller said it wasn't easy to address the challenges on the bike else Yamaha would have already done it. He highlighted several contributing factors, particularly the ride height device, a crucial component he had worked on developing during his time at Ducati. He added:

“I think if you could put it down to one point, then obviously [Yamaha] would have addressed it. I think it's an accumulation of things, whether it be [how to use] the tyres, or the ride-height device.

“I think [the ride height devices] have come to play a part in the racing more than anybody ever expected. And how well some manufacturers have got them working now is phenomenal. Plus, the aero side of things.”

The Australian rider felt Yamaha had wrongly predicted that the ride height device was going to be banned in MotoGP before 2027, leading it to neglect development in that area. He said:

“I feel that maybe they anticipated they were going to be outlawed before [2027] and so didn’t need [them] ‘early doors’. But now we've obviously found out that they've been around for quite a bit of time.

“And the same with the winglets. We went through a stage where we thought winglets were outlawed. Then they basically found a way to get around the rule.

“It's also crazy to see what the back of the bikes look like now [aero wise]. But focusing a massive part of your budget on that is a huge thing.”