Jack Miller: Some MotoGP riders “aren’t getting paid what they should be”

Jack Miller has shone a spotlight on the money that MotoGP riders are paid.

In a previous era, stars like Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo earned fortunes to race at the sharp end of the championship.

But Miller insists the salaries for riders on today’s grid has fallen since the heydays of Rossi and Lorenzo.

Fabio Quartararo is reportedly the highest-paid rider today on €12m per year. Marc Marquez walked away from Honda where he was the top earner in the sport in 2023.

Miller suggests the declining pay-packets are a result of the manufacturers, and their specific bikes, becoming the dominant force in MotoGP, rather than individual riders.

“The riders back in the day - the big three or four - were being paid incredibly,” the Pramac Yamaha rider told the Gypsy Tales podcast.

“Now guys who are rookies - or established riders, myself included - are signing for peanuts. Simply to get on the bike or get your foot in the door.

“The only other way to make decent money or to go forward is to ride something different. They have set the bar there.

“The market has dropped.

“Marc is still Marc, and Pecco is still Pecco. But take it back 10 years? It’s hard to say, being a rider, but there is nobody trying to poach your rider.

“Unless a rider wants to go - like myself or Enea from Ducati - nobody is trying to poach them. You don’t feel like you’re losing them to a competitor.

“The bikes are so strong. They set the bar. ‘You want the opportunity to ride this bike?’

“It’s unfortunate for the guys because they are not being paid accordingly.”

Jack Miller: 'Market value' decreased for MotoGP riders

Miller explained how the desperation of riders to claim the best possible bike has driven down their bargaining positions in contract talks.

He said: “The cream will always rise to the top in terms of riders. But, when you take away options, or options aren’t there because somebody is so much ahead of the rest, then it decreases the market value.

“The guys want to win, to do their best. That’s what they’re chasing - the results.

“Unfortunately some of them aren’t getting paid what they should be, to risk their life, essentially, every weekend.

“They have a limited time to make money. [Money paid to riders] has diminished a lot in the past 10 years."

Miller is a veteran of MotoGP into his 11th year.

He has represented Honda, Ducati, KTM and now Yamaha during his time in the premier class.

Miller’s career at MotoGP level seemed to be over last year when he lost his factory KTM seat to Pedro Acosta.

Alternatives seemed to have dried up until the Pramac team swapped Ducati for Yamaha, and rescued him.