Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP

Jack Miller continues to make positive steps at his home Grand Prix

Jack Miller secured fifth on the grid at Phillip Island and equalled his best result of the season with eighth place in the Sprint, scoring his first points in the Saturday race. Augusto Fernandez continued his adaptation to Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP in his first weekend replacing the injured Toprak Razgatlıoğlu.

GRAND PRIX OF AUSTRALIA

SPRINT

Phillip Island (Australia), 24th October 2026

8th

JACK MILLER
+ 7,782 / 13 LAPS

15th

AUGUSTO FERNANDEZ
+ 37,945 / 13 LAPS

The Australian Grand Prix continued on a positive trajectory for Jack Miller on Saturday, with the local hero building on the encouraging pace he showed on Friday. Fast in the morning Free Practice session, Miller progressed through Q1 before delivering another strong performance in Q2 to secure fifth place on the grid for his home Grand Prix.

Starting from the second row, the Australian went on to finish eighth in the Sprint, matching his best result of the 2026 season and scoring points in the Saturday race for the first time this year. The result provides further encouragement for Miller and Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP ahead of Sunday's Grand Prix, as the team continues to build on the progress made throughout the weekend.

Rain is forecast for Sunday, potentially adding another variable to an already eventful weekend. Miller has plenty of experience in wet conditions and knows Phillip Island exceptionally well, giving him reason to approach the race with confidence whatever the weather brings. The team will be aiming to maintain the momentum and give the Australian the best possible opportunity to match or improve on the performance he has shown so far at his final MotoGP home Grand Prix.

For Augusto Fernandez, Saturday was another important step in his first race weekend with Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP, replacing Toprak Razgatlıoğlu following the Turkish rider's injury. As Yamaha's test and development rider, Fernandez is already familiar with the YZR-M1, but adapting to the team's race weekend approach and working on race setup are different challenges. He showed promising speed during the wet morning session, while qualifying and the Sprint proved more demanding as he continued to build his race rhythm. With every session, he is gathering valuable information and working with the team to refine the setup and make further progress.

With the final MotoGP race at Phillip Island approaching, Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP will now focus on Sunday's Grand Prix, hoping to build on Miller's encouraging performance and continue making progress with Fernandez throughout his replacement appearances.

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GINO BORSOI
Team Director, Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP

Australia has already given us a great result in the Sprint, and Jack did an excellent job not only in the race but also in qualifying. We are very happy, especially because I believe these are our first Sprint points of the season. Racing at home clearly gives a rider extra motivation, but it also shows that the bike was able to support him here. We are still losing out on the straights, but through the corners, as Jack said, I think we are quite close to our rivals. That gives me some hope for tomorrow, although we will have to see what the conditions bring.

Above all, I want to congratulate Jack. This result is important for him, his family, the paddock and all his fans, because he truly deserves it.

As for Augusto, we knew he would find the race more difficult because he is still lacking race rhythm. Unfortunately, he has joined us at a point in the season when all the other riders have already completed many races and are fully up to speed. We will keep working with him and help him make progress.

JACK MILLER
Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP Rider

It was a day I’m happy-ish with. Qualifying went well, which makes life a lot easier for the Sprint, and we scored our first Sprint points of the season, so I’m happy with that. I was hoping for a little more humidity this afternoon, but unfortunately, it didn’t come. Still, we rode a good race without making mistakes, and I felt comfortable on the bike.

Overall the bike was turning well, and our corner speed was strong. The problem was that I was a bit of a sitting duck on the straights. I managed to keep the gap under control. With Brad, I felt I was faster in the corners while he had the advantage on the straight, so we ended up stuck together until Bezzecchi, Di Giannantonio and Ogura came through.
But overall, it was a decent day, and I can’t complain too much. Scoring Sprint points is already a record for us this yesr. We were strong in the wet this morning, qualifying went well and the Sprint was solid. The forecast for tomorrow looks good, and our qualifying position will be important if we get a wet race. Starting further forward and avoiding too much spray, especially here, could make a big difference. It’s a long race in the wet, so we’ll see what the conditions bring and do the best job we can.
I took my time on the in-lap to salute the crowd, and even today the turnout was massive. The fences were packed all the way around the circuit. It’s unreal to see the Australian fans turning it on for Phillip Island, and I’m sure there will be even more people here tomorrow. It looks like it could be another great day for Australian riders, too, with some of us in strong positions on the grid. As for me, we’ll see what tomorrow brings!

AUGUSTO FERNANDEZ
Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP Rider

It was a difficult day, mainly because of the conditions and the adaptation required. As we said yesterday, this weekend was always going to be challenging. This morning, I started with a very poor feeling in the wet, but we worked well and I managed to become competitive. In qualifying, the track was drying very quickly and it became more difficult.
In the dry, though, I’m still getting a reality check. I lack rhythm, especially when it comes to getting out on track and putting consecutive laps together. Yesterday, I could manage a reasonably good lap, but I was already struggling to maintain that pace for more than two laps. Today, it was even more difficult. In the wet, I seem to be more competitive, but I need more dry laps to get up to speed as quickly as possible. So, I need to be patient, keep working and hopefully take another step forward. Tomorrow looks likely to be wet again, so we’ll try to make the most of those conditions.