Last week, Ducati announced that it had renewed 2021 runner-up Pecco Bagnaia with a new two-year contract with the works team until 2024. Across the box, the current deal with Jack Miller expires at the end of the 2022 season. The Australian only has a one-year commitment, unlike his teammate Bagnaia and Jorge Martín, from the Pramac team.
Miller finished 2021 61 points behind Bagnaia, having won twice, while Ducati riders such as Jorge Martín – who won the Styrian GP in his rookie season last year – and Enea Bastianini (Gresini) have been linked with the second seat of the factory team.
Faced with this situation, Miller assures that the situation surrounding his future has not affected him, pointing out that “all the journalists in the world are beginning to write about it” at this point in the year.
“I see my situation the same as every year,” the Australian said on Thursday ahead of the 2022 Qatar Grand Prix.
“Every year around this time people start writing about me, how I’m going to lose my job, how I’m done for, so it’s the same as always. There’s nothing I can do, I have no control over it.”
Miller admitted after pre-season training that he was going into 2022 “hungry” for victory after enduring a tough start to 2021 in which he came in as a title contender.
“All I can do is the best possible job on the track. If I keep my place, I keep my place; if I don’t, I don’t,” he argued.
“It’s the same shit I have to deal with every year. I don’t understand why I have to deal with it and others don’t. But I accept it and move on.”
Ducati boss Paolo Ciabatti has also recently hinted that shuffling its drivers for 2023 is an option, as Pramac – where Miller raced before 2021 – is fully backed by the factory. He also said that Ducati would wait several races in 2022 before making a decision on Bagnaia’s teammate, but added that the brand “loves Jack”.
