It’s Miller time– at last
Jack Miller signs for Ducati MotoGP squad
‘A factory team is the only way to win’ JACK MILLER, DUCATI
Jack Miller will fulfill his ambition of becoming a full factory rider in MotoGP by joining the official Ducati team in 2021. The 25-year-old Aussie, who graduated straight from Moto3 to MotoGP in 2015, is one of the championship’s brightest stars and had the results to match in the second half of 2019 where he secured three podiums in the final six races. The announcement confirming the deal, which MCN understands will be a one-year plus contract rather than a straight twoyear deal, will be made this week. Speaking earlier in the year Miller highlighted the absolute importance of becoming an official rider in a bid to take on world champions Marc Marquez and co. He said: “I’m still learning but I definitely believe that I can take it to Marc and the guys up front when everything comes together. A factory team is the only way to win the championship.” With one half of the Ducati lineup now fixed, the factory have to choose between their current line-up: Andrea Dovizioso and Danilo Petrucci. And while Dovi is Ducati’s clear favorite the deal is proving far from straight forward with the negotiations stagnated over financial terms.
The Ducati and Dovizioso partnership started in 2013, but their seven years together has been likened to a loveless marriage or a marriage of convenience. And as they remain in negotiations to extend their arrangement by another two years, a look back at their history together highlights why the latest negotiations will be more difficult than ever.
In 2017 Ducati signed Jorge Lorenzo and made it clear they wanted Andrea Iannone – not Dovi – as the second rider, but when Iannone rejected Ducati’s offer, Dovi was retained. Dovizioso was seriously motivated by the snub and unexpectedly won six GPs that season, recovering his salary shortfall through win bonuses. It was Dovizioso’s ‘sweet revenge’. The second chapter of the toxic Ducati/Dovi relationship came when it was time to renew the contract for 2019 and 2020. With Lorenzo out, Dovi became the reference Ducati rider having earned it on the track, finishing second in the championship in 2017 and 2018. Having accepted the lower wages imposed on him in the previous contract, it was Dovizioso’s turn to set the terms. Negotiations went on for months, and in the end it was Ducati that had to meet the rider’s demands. Now Dovi and Ducati are locked in the third-round of negotiations for 2021 and 2022 and it’s a case of who needs who more? Ducati have already seen major plays for Fabio Quartararo and Maverick Viñales rejected, and their desire to try and hire them in the first place reconfirms the fact that they don’t fully believe in Dovi (yet another factor that will be hindering negotiations). But while Ducati have very few other options for a number one rider, Dovi also has his hands tied. With virtually all the full factory rides in rival teams taken for the next two seasons, it’s seemingly inevitable that Dovi and Ducati will ride out their sevenyear itch and continue to the end of 2022. Unless, of course, the 34-year-old Italian decides to call it a day at the end of 2020.