Home hero Jack Miller has been left ruing what could have been at the Liqui Moly Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix, reflecting upon what was an otherwise ‘positive’ weekend at Phillip Island for Australia’s lone premier class MotoGP entry.

The 30-year-old posted the fastest time in Friday’s opening practice session at the Southern Victorian venue, marking a promising start for both rider and the YZR-M1 through the early stages of the event.

Experienced Queenslander Miller went on to qualify third on the front row of the grid for the 27-lap feature race, but his run came to an early end when he crashed out on lap five after losing the front at Siberia. He had finished an encouraging fourth in Saturday’s Sprint.

“Not the way I wanted to end what had been a positive weekend,” Miller commented. “I got a decent start and was in the front group, although I was struggling a bit more than in the previous days, especially in turns two and six.

“I felt I had to push a little harder, and after a couple of warnings at turn six – with some vibrations going in – the third time the bike just said ’no more‘ and went away from me. I’m disappointed to have let everyone down after what had been a strong weekend where we showed great pace. I‘ll try to take the positives and understand what went wrong today.”

The result extended a difficult run for Miller, who last scored a top-10 finish eight races ago in the Czechia GP. Miller now sits 18th in the MotoGP World Championship standings with three rounds remaining.