Miller scores breakthrough win at Qatar
After switching to the Red Bull KTM Ajo machine at the end of the 2013 season, Miller had been fast in all the pre-season testing, so was looking like he would make good on the promise he had shown, especially last year.
The 19-year-old Queenslander qualified third, behind Alex Rins (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Honda) and Alex Marquez (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Honda), on the front row of the grid under the lights of Qatar's Losail circuit.
When the race started, Marquez took the lead, closely followed by the Aussie, while poleman Rins dropped back through the field to be as low as 12th at the end of the opening lap.
At the front, Miller and Marquez battled for the lead, but the Spaniard was at the front each time they crossed the line - except one! A late mistake from Marquez let the Australian in - on the last lap - for his first victory and first ever Grand Prix podium.
Behind the leading pair, Efren Vazquez (SaxoPrint-RTG Honda) crossed the line just 0.047s off second place to complete the podium and step onto the rostrum for the first time since 2011.
Miguel Oliveira (Mahindra Racing) was the best of the seven Mahindra-equipped riders at Qatar, missing the podium by just 0.015s in fourth. After his poor start, Rins climbed back up towards the top three, finishing just a fraction behind Oliveira in fifth.
Jakub Kornfeil (Calvo Team) was also close to the front running group, eventually placing sixth, 1.5 seconds ahead of the experienced Alexis Masbou (Ongetta-Rivacold). Isaac Vinales (Calvo Team), Niccolo Antonelli (Junior Team GO&FUN) and Francesco Bagnaia (SKY Racing Team VR46) completed the top ten.
Miller's team mate, Karel Hanika, finished 14th on his Moto3 debut, while the Husqvarna-branded KTM Ajo machines of Danny Kent and Niklas Ajo finished 13th and 26th, respectively, Ajo crashing and finishing one lap down on the rest of the field.
Australia's other Moto3 entrant, Arthus Sissis, did not start the race. Sissis had competed in all free practise sessions, and qualified 26th on the grid, but was suffering from tonsilitis. Despite taking a bunch of pills, and taking part in the evening warm-up, Sissis did not consider himself well enough to ride, so did not start the race.
Jules Danilo (Ambrogio Racing) crashed on the last lap, Matteo Ferrari (San Carlo Team Italia) retired mid race after an earlier accident, whilst Hafiq Azmi (SIC-Ajo KTM) and Eric Granado (Calvo Team) crashed out early on, with Gabriel Ramos (Kiefer Racing) pulling up with a technical problem.
There were also crashes for Niklas Ajo (Avant Tecno Husqvarna Ajo) and Juanfran Guevara (Mapfre Aspar Team Moto3), but all the riders were OK.
Images: motogp.com
