Jack Miller’s fate up in the air but experts tell Yamaha what they should decide

The fate of Jack Miller is yet to be decided ahead of this weekend’s Austrian MotoGP.

Pramac Yamaha have not confirmed their full 2026 MotoGP rider line-up during the summer break, instead opting for more time to finalise it.

They have signed Toprak Razgatlioglu in a hugely intriguing move but must now decide whether either of their current riders, Jack Miller or Miguel Oliveira, will partner him.

The decision they should make on Miller is clear, according to the Crash MotoGP podcast.

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“If there is an announcement, I wouldn’t expect it until the week of Misano which is Pramac’s home race. They like to do these things on Italian weekends,” Lewis Duncan explained.

“The conventional wisdom is that Miller will get the nod over Oliveira, despite Oliveira having a contract. There is a suggestion that Oliveira has a clause in his contract where the team, if the performance hasn’t been there, can cancel it.

“That would be fair enough. Yes, there have been injuries but Oliveira hasn’t performed for a while.

“Since he stepped off the KTM he hasn’t been the same rider.

“Miller has been quicker generally. He has been solid on the Yamaha, the results don’t match that. There have been unfortunate things, think of Thailand where the fairing fell off.

“Jack is probably more popular with sponsors and is a good development rider which is something that Yamaha can benefit from.

“It seems that Miller will be the one, and I think that’s fair enough.

“Yamaha’s rider situation, for 2027, is something to get on top of.

“The depth of that brand [is not there] behind Fabio Quartararo.

“We see that with Alex Rins who hasn’t been good for a long time.

“There are some suggestions that Jack ends up with the factory seat. I am not sure about that. It would only be for a year until the re-set. It’s not unheard of.

“We have seen progress but I don’t think it’s the progress, for all the resources thrown at this project, that we expected.”

It had been rumoured that Yamaha could opt for a major reshuffle by ditching Rins and promoting Miller into the factory garage.

Miller was rescued from his MotoGP career ending a year ago by the new-look Pramac team who were switching from Ducati to Yamaha.

He had lost his KTM seat and had already said his goodbyes to the premier class.

Miller brought Honda, Ducati and KTM experience to the Yamaha project and is their second rider in the MotoGP standings behind Quartararo.