In a recent interview, former Repsol Honda manager Livio Suppo remembered his frustration at seeing Jack Miller leave for Ducati competition, even though it was the Japanese from HRC who had spotted him and brought him to MotoGP. No doubt, but echoing this, his counterpart and still in office Francesco Guidotti replied that when he arrived at Pramac, the Australian was still barely in shape. Everything remained to be done on a pilot who seemed to have been left to his own devices...
History will remember in fact that if Jack Miller arrived in MotoGP, it was through Honda which made him make a jump from Moto3 to this major category, without going through the Moto2 box. Certainly, but if, today, the same Australian has a contract Ducati in the pocket to be part of the factory team, it is not thanks to the HRC. But the fruit of long training work accomplished within the Pramac satellite team.
Franceso Guidotti comment on Motorsport : " no disrespect to anyone, but honestly, when he came to us in 2018, even though he had already done three years of MotoGP, he seemed to be in his first or second year ". And he adds: “ where he was before, obviously, they left him to fend for himself. He was very young and probably hadn't been followed much ».
Pramac therefore had to do the job, despite the fact that Miller is already a Grand Prix winner in MotoGP: “ When he came to see us, we realized there was a little more work to do than we thought. But he was also good at absorbing things quickly and understanding what was important. It was not an easy first year, there were also some fairly strong verbal clashes, but with the greatest respect, because we always believed in his talent and his potential. ».
“the objective of a factory team is different, it will still have to take a big leap”
« He understood that these disagreements were intended to grow together and not to place the blame on him. From there, I think he also understood the work system a little and worked with his manager Aki Ajo to improve certain aspects that he needed ». Guidotti is therefore precise. But he warns that nothing is certain yet. The 25-year-old driver will have to take another step to live up to his new status.
« He made some mistakes last year, but it was also the first year he was consistently in the positions that mattered ", said Guidotti that holds the top spot. " It was a new situation for him and he found himself making this little mistake several times which could ruin the result a bit. Towards the end of the season he became very consistent, but that won't be enough for the factory team. These podiums and front rows are important in a satellite team, but the goal in a factory team is different, so he will still have to make a big jump ».
Miller finished the 2019 campaign in eighth place in the standings and just 11 points behind his factory counterpart Petrucci, after scoring four podiums and qualifying on the front row three times in the last ten races.
