Source: LCR.

Jack Miller emerged as the top Open class Honda rider at the German Grand Prix on Sunday as he came home 15th in the MotoGP class at the Sachsenring.

After qualifying 18th, the 20-year-old Australian rookie made an excellent start and looked set for a solid points finish as he lapped in 13th. However, he endured some issues with his bike towards the end of the race which meant he had to ease up to ensure he saw the chequered flag.

“It was a really good start to the race for about the first 20 laps, but then I started to have problems with spin, especially down the hill, and I had a really big moment when the bike went sideways,” said Miller.

“That allowed Hector [Barbera] and Alvaro [Bautista] back through and it was hard to sit behind them as I was quicker than them through the corners, but they were able to get on the gas on the straights and make a big break”.

The Australian still emerged as the top open Honda rider, though, finishing nearly five seconds ahead of former world champion Nicky Hayden and admitted afterwards he was pretty satisfied with his weekend’s work.

“It’s not quite ideal, but it’s an improvement from last week and we are definitely improving each week. We’ve had some good results and some bad results, today could have been a really good result but it wasn’t to be,” he added. “Anyway, I’m quite happy with my first half-season in MotoGP, it’s been difficult but it’s also been a lot of fun.”

Miller is now 18th in the world championship standings at the halfway point of the season.