Despite the fact that his Sprint Race lasted just six laps, Jack Miller established himself as one of the main role players on Saturday in Buriram, thanks to a fourth-place qualification that turned out to be well beyond the most optimistic of forecasts. He started off psyched and with every intention of battling it out, but the Australian didn't properly assess the state of the tires and threw away an almost certain finish in the points zone.
"At the critical moment of the tire, when it reached the peak of temperature and pressure, I had everything under control, but then it started to drop, and I ignored the warnings," he admitted. "I had Morbidelli in front, and I honestly believed that the battle between him and Bagnaia would help me. I tried to be clean, but maybe I took too many risks. Hopefully, I've learned my lesson for tomorrow but, overall, I had fun. I know I can handle the bike and make it slide like I want, so the feeling itself is good."
The question on the statements made by Fabio Quartararo, his brand colleague, was inevitable. Off the bat he said that that fourth result in the Q2 was obtained with his brain switched off. "There's no rider who doesn't switch off his brain to enter a corner with a bike at 300 km/h. If it were on, it would say to stop, but that's our job. In the Sprint, mine was working well. I knew what I was trying to do, which was to get a margin from those following me and get closer to those ahead of me," he commented.
"I was convinced that the group would come together and there'd be overtakings, but maneuvers are complicated here and, in any case, they would've slowed me down. On the positive side, the rear tire was in good condition," he stated. "The Yamaha is conservative in this respect, so I was sure it would work in my favor, but I couldn't take advantage of it. The difference with the KTM? The tires respond better in corners."
Finally, on possible chattering and criticalities in interpreting the behavior of the M1, the 30-year-old explained: "We don't have any, and that's why you'll always see a smile on my face. Even today, after the accident, the causes were immediately clear. I should've kept my brain slightly more switched on. After spending three months off the bike, and a long period of being uncompetitive, to be back in the game, especially on a track like this, where we tested and everyone is high level, was nice."