08/31/2021 |
Christina Bulpett |
MotoGP
Image: GeeBee Pictures
Ducati Lenovo’s Jack Miller crossed the Silverstone line in fourth on Sunday after narrowly losing a late-race fight to Aleix Espargaro in the British GP.
The dramatic podium battle on the final lap gave Miller a brief lead before the Aprilia struck back and claimed the Italian brand’s first podium in the modern MotoGP era. The Australian seemed at a loss with his inability to overtake.
“My right side of the tire was really good, his was looking, from the back I could see he was struggling more on the right side, and my left side was a bit of a shit and his was pretty good.
“So I was able to catch the run for example, but it seemed like that, with Pecco, with Me and even when I got to Pol, but Pol went far. But when I had a bit of air between myself and others I could push really well and set pretty fast lap times, but as soon as I got behind the guys I started to suffer a bit and I couldn’t really hold out.
“You’re preparing this move for a few laps, but like I said it had a bit more on the left, so I rolled really hard through Turn 12 and had to break, but then the right turn, we’re all right . Then on the left side he could straighten it up and he had a little more drive on me so that he could get the drive out. Even on the straight line – because you leave both straight lines on the left side and I tormented myself a little there. He was just able to make his way through so that I couldn’t attack in the final corners.
“Not a bad end to the day, but I would certainly have loved to have been on the podium. Anyway, we keep working and it was definitely a better day than yesterday – it felt really good to be able to fight and at the end of the race to show that I have potential, that I am not just facing physical or other problems fade away.
“As you can see, I was able to push throughout the race today. Okay, I relaxed a bit and was able to increase my race pace and then around the sixth lap I could really push and work my way forward. Like I said, it was just weird to me that when I got behind this group it was Pol, Aleix and Alex Rins. I was behind them and was half a second faster. Arrived felt awesome, but when I got there I was on the brakes. I just didn’t feel – okay, I had to use a few different lines here and there, so they were kind of disabled, let’s say. For example, I drive very hard in the eighth on the brakes and with the guys in front I couldn’t brake exactly as I normally would. So there were a few minor things, but I just want to investigate why it was so difficult to overtake. Especially getting really close to the other guys was pretty tough.
“I never had a light or anything so I don’t think it was the front tire pressure, but we’ll have to wait. My tire felt awesome, my front tire felt perfect. As if I was a little loose on the first round just because I was on the medium. I’ve seen some of the other guys on softs. They really existed in the first round. Although I only tried to work my way into the race because I rode on the harder tires.
“I waited at the beginning, it was more of a strategy. I didn’t really want to push and, to be honest, I was pretty shocked because I was in the group, in the back, so to speak, and I could see the whole group, basically in first place. And then I got into a little tussle with Me, and when that calmed down and I was behind him, I looked and saw that Fabio had come forward and he was fucking miles ahead of us and I thought, ‘When is that happened?’
“He was just gone. I thought, ‘Okay, it looks like we’re going to be fighting for second place here’. It was one of those races.
“I enjoyed it, I had the feeling that my strategy wasn’t bad, but I think a better starting position would definitely have helped. Because in order not to have to do these overtaking maneuvers or to get stuck in a battle, it would have been nice to concentrate more than anything on my own race, but in any case, since the first lap was quite hectic, unharmed and in one Getting out of a decent position was pretty nice. “
With six manufacturers in the top six positions in the BritishGP and consistently challenging Aprilia in recent races, Miller is excited about the future of MotoGP and confident that Maverick Viñales made the right choice by moving to the Noale plant.
“Yes, of course, he rubs his hands together. I mean it’s always nice, it seems like he picked the perfect time to jump over to Aprilia. I think it comes down to all of the hard work Aleix, Savadori and the previous drivers have done there. You’ve worked really hard since I got into MotoGP. It’s good to see them and it’s great to have a different manufacturer like KTM on the box, Suzuki on the box, Yamaha on the box, Honda on the box. So many manufacturers can now fight for podiums and victories. That’s great for sport! “