Jack Miller races to best finish of MotoGP career with 11th place at Catalunya MotoGP

JACK Miller posted the best finish of his MotoGP career at the Catalunya Grand Prix, the Australian rookie coming home in 11th place.

JACK Miller posted the best finish of his MotoGP career at the Catalunya Grand Prix, the Australian rookie coming home in 11th place.

The 20-year-old made his now standard rocket ship start, gaining six places on the opening lap to cross the line in 15th. After crashing out of the last two races, Miller focused on making it to the finish and maximising his opportunity to continue learning the secrets of the machine.

He engaged in a race-long scrap with Alvaro Bautista, but elected to let the improving Aprilia go in the closing stages and settle for a healthy amount of points.

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“I am really happy to bring the bike home after two races of not finishing,” Miller said. “We struggled over the weekend and really had to work hard during today’s race.

“We got a good start, and we were in among a good group. I really got stuck in and settled into a rhythm, although I did have a few moments because it was slippery out there. We struggled a lot with the front still.

“It’s good to put some more points on the board, but we are still learning all the time on the bike. I still need more laps on it and crashing out of the race is not the way forward.”

The result moves him to equal 17th in the standings with Bautista, and just five points off the top Open Class rider Hector Barbera.

Miller’s focus will not turn to Monday’s post-race test at Catalunya, where he hopes to be able to find more improvements to the front-end grip issue that seems to be plaguing Honda across all classes.

“I’m really looking forward to our test tomorrow and putting some time in on the bike and working on our base setup so we can be better prepared for the races coming up where you need a good feeling from the front end.

“I think it couldn’t have come at a better time. We really need to work and try different things because I am a rookie and I don’t know the bike very well. We have so many options that we just don’t have the time to try, so a test is definitely needed.”

Originally published as Jack Miller races to best finish of MotoGP career with 11th place at Catalunya MotoGP