Miller: ‘I adapted easier than expected’, misses out on ‘laps in anger’

‘I had fun, did a lot of laps, happy with the result’ - those were some of the words used by a content Jack Miller after the Australian made his KTM debut at the Valencia MotoGP test.

Robert Jones

09 Nov 2022

One of eight riders to switch manufacturers - that includes rookie Augusto Fernandez - Miller finished just under three tenths off new MotoGP team-mate Brad Binder.

Making the switch to KTM after five years with Ducati, Miller was fast throughout the day despite not setting a time attack in the closing stages.

"A lot of fun! The weather was perfect for testing today," said Miller. "The wind picked up a little bit but nonetheless we were able to get out on track relatively early and ride right to the end of the session.

"I did a lot of laps, had a lot of fun, shaking down the new bike, understanding the new team and it was a good day."

What can Miller achieve in first MotoGP season KTM?

Miller’s move to KTM sees him leave the manufacturer with arguably the best bike on the grid (Ducati), but as Binder showed in Valencia, race pace of the RC16 is just as good as any other bike on its day.

While Binder has often managed to get more out of his KTM than others, Miller also showed in Japan and Thailand that he can deliver similar performances.

Qualifying, which has also been a problem for KTM over the last few years, has been a strength of Miller’s during his time in the premier class, so you would assume that the Australian has a good chance of helping the Austrian manufacturer improve in that area.

Speaking about his adaptation to the RC16, Miller added: "To be honest I adapted easier than I expected. After being on another bike for such a considerable amount of time, I felt pretty comfortable from the get-go and was then playing around with it for the rest of the day.

"I felt relatively comfy by the end of the day and was pretty happy with how we finished up. Unfortunately there was no real time attack and I did the best time on a medium [rear].

"The soft at the end of the day - well we had to drop the medium and had to use the soft basically to work and try and get a few different things [sorted].

"I would have loved to have thrown some laps at it in anger, but nonetheless, pretty happy with the result."