Miller accepts Vinales apology after early-race clash
Monday, 7 August 2023
Jack Miller started second, fell to 15th and recovered to eighth after a fraught British Grand Prix, where a lack of grip and contact with Aprilia's Maverick Vinales defined his race result.
Jack Miller has refused to blame Maverick Vinales for costing him a stronger result at the British Grand Prix, the KTM rider admitting he was "suffering" for pace before a lap three incident with the Spanish rider saw him fall to 15th place before recovering to eighth at the chequered flag.
The Australian made his customary blistering start from second on the grid to lead into the first corner and for the first lap, but was quickly demoted by Ducati pair Pecco Bagnaia and Marco Bezzecchi on lap two. On the following lap, Miller was under attack from Ducati's Alex Marquez when Vinales shoved him off the track at Copse, the 28-year-old sent wide across the run-off area and falling to 14th place.
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While Miller would eventually make the most of other riders' misfortunes and move forward late in the race in the drizzle that hit Silverstone in the closing laps, he felt the clash with Vinales didn't dictate his result.
"Was it ambitious? Sure, but it's one of those things," Miller said of the incident.
"At the end of the day, it's racing … what goes around comes around in racing. He came up and apologised and I accepted his apology, and that's it. I don't think he intended to send me out that far.
"I was suffering a little bit more before that (the incident). I went out in front off the get-go and felt I was struggling for grip, just couldn't get it working from the start. That was everywhere – entry, exit, mid-corner. I wasn't able to force it, especially on the right-hand side (of the tyre), so I was just trying to consolidate my position."
Miller was one of the stars of Saturday in atrocious conditions at Silverstone, qualifying second for the second time this season, and taking KTM's best-ever qualifying result at the British track by finishing 0.270secs behind pole-sitter Bezzecchi. Grip issues in Saturday's 10-lap Sprint, which saw him drop to seventh after 10 laps, were a sign of things to come in Sunday's Grand Prix proper.
Miller also conceded he was cognisant of the rain that had lashed the track on Saturday as he took to the tarmac run-off after being pushed wide by Vinales, and was well aware that the circumstances of the latter part of the race helped him to take some decent points away from Silverstone, an outcome that didn't look likely when he was in 15th place with eight laps to go.
"The contact with Maverick … unfortunately there's a metre of grass between the two asphalts there that outline the track, and with it bucketing down so much this weekend I was a bit cautious going through the wet grass and kept it nice and straight," he explained.
"Fortunately for us the rain started coming, and that gave me a chance to catch that group in front. A couple of guys pulled in (to change bikes), a couple crashed, so we were able to get something out of it.
"Coming away with a top-10 (finish) is nice … but it just wasn't the way I wanted the weekend to unfold."
Jack's British Grand Prix by the numbers
- Qualified: 2nd
- Sprint (10 laps): 7th
- Grand Prix (20 laps): 8th
- Fastest lap: 2mins 01.393secs (18th), lap 11
- Points this event: 11
- Points this season: 90 (8th in world championship)
