Miller and Vinales set the pace in practice
TOWNSVILLE’S Jack Miller and Yamaha factory rider Maverick Vinales set the early pace in the opening MotoGP practice session at Phillip Island.
The duo were the only competitors to squeeze under 1 min 30 seconds in the session delayed by an oil spill at the start of the Moto3 practice. Vinales clocked 1: 29.952, just 0.037 seconds ahead of Miller.
But Miller was unable to repeat his heroics from the opening session, but still currently sits in eighth overall on combined practice times.
Should he remain among the 10 fastest after Saturday morning’s Free Practice 3, Miller will automatically progress to Qualifying 2 that afternoon which will determine the first 12 grid positions for Sunday’s race.
A late lap from Andrea Iannone put Suzuki on top after both sessions, with Iannone 0.16 of a second quicker than Pramac Ducati’s Danilo Petrucci, while the earlier session’s fast man Vinales rounded out the top three.
Miller was a surprise early leader in last year’s race before falling down the order to finish a creditable seventh.
But that was on a Marc VDS Honda, with the 23- year- old to attack the famed island circuit this time on a Pramac Racing Ducati after an off- season switch.
“If you’re feeling good and if it’s working, you can make any bike work well around here,” Miller said.
“It’s a track where every corner flows into each other.”