You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
BLOG<br />
THE TOAST OF THE TOWN<br />
More than Europe’s<br />
largest MC store<br />
How can one judge a rider’s maturity and big game<br />
temperament? To start, the ability to remain composed in<br />
the face of adversity stands out. As does sticking to your<br />
convictions. Learning from mistakes of the past is a sign<br />
of using experience to your advantage. And then there’s<br />
the holding of nerve when a big prize comes into sight. All<br />
of the above was very much evident in Jack Miller’s<br />
Sunday’s performance at Phillip Island...<br />
It was a result and showing that<br />
suggested the Australian, now at<br />
24 years of age, is well on his way<br />
to fulfilling that deep well of talent<br />
that first became clear in his<br />
crash-happy days as a Moto3 loon.<br />
Shrugging off an average qualifying<br />
performance was just the<br />
start. “We weren’t too phased<br />
to be ninth on the grid,” he later<br />
said. “I’ve been much worse.” He<br />
was true to his belief when prerace<br />
favourite Maverick Viñales<br />
switched from Michelin’s hard<br />
rear compound to the soft on the<br />
grid. “I was just thinking, ‘They’re<br />
pretty keen.’” He held back and<br />
conserved his rear tyre for much<br />
of the race. And when a podium<br />
presented itself on the final lap he<br />
ignored his “heart rate jumping<br />
up about 50 beats per second” to<br />
hold third place to the flag.<br />
There were so many takeaway<br />
moments from yet another Phillip<br />
Island classic on Sunday. <strong>No</strong>t<br />
least the sight of Andrea Iannone<br />
leading a race aboard Aprilia’s<br />
unfancied RS-GP for nine corners.<br />
Or Cal Crutchlow making a heroic<br />
podium return at the track that so<br />
nearly ended his career a year ago.<br />
Then there was Marc Marquez’s<br />
expert dismantling of Viñales that<br />
led the latter to conclude he’d<br />
rather throw his Yamaha M1 down<br />
the road than congratulate his<br />
great foe on another victory.<br />
But Miller’s well-judged third place<br />
that sparked an impromptu parc<br />
fermé pile on from team, family<br />
and friends alike wasn’t just special<br />
because home fans witnessed<br />
a full ‘Shoey’ in the country that<br />
thought up the craze. This was<br />
further evidence of added maturity<br />
and a rider that, to borrow crew<br />
chief Cristian Pupulin’s words, is<br />
now “using his mind more than<br />
his talent.”<br />
There was a moment as Marquez<br />
barged Crutchlow off line and out<br />
of the way at Lukey Heights to set<br />
off after Viñales when attentions<br />
turned to further back in the pack.<br />
Where was Miller and why had he<br />
been so subdued until then?
Change language