Jack Miller has revealed he was set to step into fill the injured Jorge Lorenzo's place at the factory Ducati team for the Australian Grand Prix, but this plane went “pear-shaped” during the Motegi race.
Lorenzo suffered a fractured wrist in a heavy FP2 fall in Thailand, which ruled him out of the Buriram race and subsequently the Japanese and Australian Grands Prix.
Writing in his post-race column for redbull.com, Miller revealed it had been decided with Ducati that he would replace Lorenzo for his homecoming and race the works GP18 at Phillip Island.
However, after Andrea Dovizioso's crash on the penultimate lap at Motegi all but ended the Italian marque's hopes of the manufacturers' title at the time, Ducati wanted Miller – who also crashed out in Japan – to remain on his Pramac GP17 to push for the independent teams' title.
“I was a bit flat on Sunday after the Japan race when I arrived at the Island, because I was still thinking about a chance to ride something different that didn't quite happen,” wrote Miller.
“When we were in Japan, Jorge pulled out with injury and was ruled out for the Island as well, so it looked like I may have an opportunity to have a ride of the factory bike alongside Dovi at my home GP.
“Before the race at Motegi, that was the plan we'd decided on with Ducati. But then it all went pear-shaped on Sunday in Japan for me; I crashed out of the race, and when Dovi fell off and didn't score any points, Ducati were more keen for me to stay on my usual bike for Australia so we could try to keep the lead in the independent teams' championship with Alma Pramac Racing, because the manufacturers' championship for Ducati was more or less out of reach after no points in Japan.”
Ducati instead drafted in Miller's GP17 stablemate Alvaro Bautista from the Nieto team to replace Lorenzo, with the Spaniard finishing an impressive fourth after fighting for the podium on his GP18 debut.
“They put Bautista on Jorge's bike for the Island instead, so it probably wasn't much of a surprise that I was a bit disappointed after Motegi when the plans changed and I ended up on my bum in the gravel and stuffed my own races,” added Miller, who was sixth in his home race after leading the opening lap.
“I got over it quickly enough, but you have to wonder what it would have been like. Aussies on red factory Ducatis tend to go alright at Phillip Island, don't they?”
Miller will ride a works Desmosedici next year in Pramac colours, running the same GP19 Dovizioso and current teammate Danilo Petrucci will race. Pramac currently leads the independent teams' standings by 51 points over LCR Honda.
