Miller boosted by jump in speed at Portugal

Aussie Jack Miller is boosted by a “massive step up” at Portugal where he scored his first top five Grand Prix finish in almost a year.

A clash between Ducati giants Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez helped promote Miller into the top five at the Portuguese Grand Prix dominated by Jorge Martin. 

The fifth place result was a big one for Miller, who struggled in Qatar and had a fall on his way to 21st.

But the #43 turned a corner at Algarve finishing fifth in qualifying, the Sprint and the Grand Prix.

It is the first time the KTM rider recorded a top five Sunday result since his podium at the 2023 Spanish Grand Prix, 18 races and 11 months ago.

Miller was upbeat when reflecting on his Portuguese pace.

“This was a massive step up from Qatar,” Miller wrote on his website. 

“The bike has plenty of potential, it’s just about unlocking it by digging into the data and having a crack out on track.

“As a team, we were fairly competitive across all sessions, being there or thereabouts from the first practice session onwards. 

“We managed to post a time that took us directly into Q2, and the feeling on the bike matched the pace for me which was nice.

“A couple of fifths followed from Q2 to the Sprint Race, which I was happy…ish with. 

“I feel like I left a little more on the table in the Sprint, and took a little too long to adapt to the conditions with the wind. 

“Once I was comfortable though I kept the gap, which I believe was our maximum pace for that race.

“Starting from fifth in the Feature Race, I started up with the front guys and tried to keep in tow, and was pretty fast in most areas except the last sector which I was struggling to tip it into. 

“I was trying to hang in there until the tire dropped, sinking the claws into the guys at the front if you like, and yeah just kind of did the best I could.

“We were fortunate with a couple of mistakes by the others at the end, although you gotta have some luck of your own sometimes, right?”

Miller now heads to COTA which is a track he “really enjoys” having stood on the podium in 2019 and 2022 while he was in victory contention before crashing last year.

Image: jackmiller43.com

Don’t forget the latest issue of Auto Action available via subscription here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ – the only place you’ll get to read the full story. For more of the latest motorsport news, subscribe to AUTO ACTION magazine.