“I get stared at in these conditions “ – Miller goes slick to second
Jack Miller jokes he was always destined to switch to slick tyres in the closing stages of a damp qualifying session for the Czech Republic MotoGP at Brno simply because ‘people expect it’ of him now.
The Australian has a habit of making good calls in tricky conditions, not least in 2016 at a sodden Assen when he famously claimed a shock maiden win and then Argentina last year when he was the only rider left lined up on the grid having made an early choice on changing tyres before warm-up lap, unlike his 23 pit-lane bound rivals.
Jack Miller jokes he was always destined to switch to slick tyres in the closing stages of a damp qualifying session for the Czech Republic MotoGP at Brno simply because ‘people expect it’ of him now.
The Australian has a habit of making good calls in tricky conditions, not least in 2016 at a sodden Assen when he famously claimed a shock maiden win and then Argentina last year when he was the only rider left lined up on the grid having made an early choice on changing tyres before warm-up lap, unlike his 23 pit-lane bound rivals.
Indeed, Miller was one of only two riders to take the gamble – the other being pole sitter Marc Marquez – the Pramac Ducati rider duly being rewarded with second position on the grid… even he would slip off soon after in his efforts to challenge for pole.
Despite the caution being adopted by his rivals, Miller insists he was more comfortable on the dry rubber due to the rapid wear of the treaded tyres on such a long circuit when it begins to dry.
“A reasonable day, iot ended up in the gravel trap which wasn’t ideal but as soon as it gets to those tricky conditions I get stared at a lot and people expect me to put them on,” he joked.
“I felt safer on the slicks than I did on the wets because when you go from wet to dry on the wet tyres, when you hit the edge the bike is all over the place.
“It took me 20secs longer than Marc to swap to the slick bike and I think that made the difference. I caught the rain on the second to last lap on the final corner, then it was a little bit more wet on the last lap and I was just shy of about 200m.”
Competitive in warmer climes too after ending FP2 up in third position, Miller has high hopes for Sunday’s race, which is forecast to stay dry.
“It’s been nice to start the weekend strongly, the last couple of GPs haven’t been ideal for us so it is nice to come to a track and feel good off the bat. The team is working really well and we will see what we have tomorrow – Marc’s on fire at the moment.”
