Jack Miller
Yamaha officially confirm departure at end of 2026
Yamaha has officially confirmed that Jack Miller will leave their MotoGP project at the conclusion of the 2026 MotoGP World Championship.
The confirmation came through two releases issued on successive days at Aragon, bringing Miller’s second chapter with Pramac and his two-season association with Yamaha to a close.
Neither announcement revealed where the 31-year-old Australian will race in 2027.
WorldSBK appears the most likely destination, and Miller has been linked with several possibilities in the production-based championship, most persistently a factory Yamaha R1 seat. His name has also been floated in connection with Honda, BMW and Ducati machinery at different points in the wider paddock rumour mill.
At this stage, however, Miller, Yamaha, or any prospective team has not publicly confirmed a 2027 agreement. Nor have Yamaha or Pramac formally declared that this will be the end of Miller’s MotoGP career; only that his time within their project will conclude after the final round of 2026.
Miller: “I still believe I have more to offer”
Miller made it clear that he does not regard the announcement as a retirement statement, while also stressing that his immediate attention remains on completing the season properly with Prima Pramac Yamaha.
“I’d like to thank Yamaha, Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP, and everyone involved in the project for the opportunity we’ve shared since the start of the 2025 season. It has been a rewarding experience to be part of a group working hard to build for the future. We’ve all given everything to move the project forward, and I’m proud to have played my part in that journey.
“I still believe I have more to offer and more to achieve, and I’ll take that motivation with me into whatever comes next. I’m looking forward to the next chapter of my career and seeing where that journey will lead. But before then, there are still races left this season, and my full focus remains on finishing the year strongly with the team.”
Yamaha praises Miller’s contribution
Yamaha highlighted Miller’s technical understanding and development feedback, along with his willingness to take on the additional challenge of representing the factory at the Suzuka 8 Hours in both 2025 and 2026.
Paolo Pavesio said Miller arrived at an important stage of Yamaha’s MotoGP rebuild and became a valuable contributor from the outset.
Paolo Pavesio – Managing Director, Yamaha Motor Racing
“Jack joined Yamaha at an important stage of our MotoGP project and immediately became a valuable contributor. His technical understanding, openness with feedback, and relentless commitment helped us move forward in several areas.
“He approached every challenge with professionalism and enthusiasm. This same dedication was illustrated by his willingness to represent Yamaha at the Suzuka 8 Hours in addition to his MotoGP commitments.
“Beyond his contribution on track, Jack brought tremendous energy to our team. His positive attitude, team spirit, and ability to build strong relationships across the garage made him a pleasure to work with and a highly valued teammate for everyone involved in the project.
“On behalf of Yamaha, I would like to sincerely thank Jack for everything he has done for our programme. We wish him nothing but success for the future, and we hope our paths will cross again and that one day we may have the opportunity to see him back in Yamaha blue.”
That closing sentence is notable. It leaves the door open to a future reunion with Yamaha, but stops well short of placing Miller on a Yamaha R1 in WorldSBK next season.
A difficult call for Pramac
Miller first joined Pramac in 2018 and spent three seasons with the team on Ducati machinery, establishing himself as a regular MotoGP podium contender before earning promotion to the factory Ducati squad.
He returned to Pramac in 2025 to help spearhead the team’s new Yamaha chapter and will leave after five seasons across those two stints.
Pramac Team Principal Paolo Campinoti said Miller’s impact reached well beyond results.
Paolo Campinoti – Team Principal, Pramac Racing
“Some riders pass through a team, while others leave a lasting mark on its history, and Jack certainly belongs to the second group. Over the time he has spent with us, he has become an important part of the Prima Pramac story, both through what he has achieved on track and through the person he has been within our team.
“We are naturally sorry that our journey together is coming to an end, but this is part of the decisions that have to be made in our sport. We wish Jack and his family every success for whatever comes next. The door will always be open for him, because once you’re part of the Prima Pramac family, you’ll always be part of it.”
Team Director Gino Borsoi described parting with Miller as one of the most difficult decisions the operation had faced, praising the Australian for continuing to give his maximum even through Yamaha’s most trying periods.
WorldSBK likely, but not official
Miller had already been candid about the direction his career may take. Speaking in late July, he acknowledged that his time in MotoGP had “kind of run its course”, said there was “nothing on paper”, and identified WorldSBK as the option that appeared to offer him the best chance to perform.
The factory Yamaha WorldSBK seat has since remained the strongest and most persistent link, and Miller confirmed in early August that discussions with Yamaha about racing in another championship were continuing.
Speculation has also linked Miller with Honda, BMW and Ducati machinery as the 2027 WorldSBK market has evolved. Some of those possibilities may have narrowed as other riders and teams moved closer to their own agreements.
For now, the distinction is simple but important: Miller has been linked with several WorldSBK seats, but he has not yet been officially confirmed for any of them.
The Yamaha R1 bridge is already there
It is easy to understand why the prospect of Miller remaining with Yamaha in WorldSBK has gained so much traction.
Yamaha drafted Miller into its official Suzuka 8 Hours effort in 2025, pairing him with Katsuyuki Nakasuga and established Yamaha WorldSBK campaigner Andrea Locatelli aboard the factory YZF-R1.
The trio finished second on Yamaha’s factory return to the Japanese endurance classic, prompting Yamaha to keep the combination together for 2026.
That second attempt again produced runner-up honours, but Miller was one of the stars of a treacherous wet race. The Australian set the fastest lap of the entire 2026 Suzuka 8 Hours, a 2m16.034s on lap 102, while helping Yamaha chase Honda all the way to another second-place finish.
An EWC-specification R1 is obviously not the same motorcycle used in WorldSBK, but Miller has now spent two years working within Yamaha’s production-based racing environment. If an R1 deal is ultimately struck, he would hardly be walking into that next chapter cold.
Two Suzuka podiums and an established relationship do not, however, amount to a confirmed 2027 contract.
2014 – the season that changed everything
Miller’s Grand Prix career stretches back to 2011, when he made his 125 cc World Championship debut at the Sachsenring. He graduated to Moto3 for 2012, but it was his move into the Red Bull KTM Ajo squad for 2014 that transformed him from promising Australian youngster into genuine world championship material.
The season began perfectly. Miller scored his first Grand Prix victory in the opening Moto3 race at Qatar, beating Alex Marquez after a last-lap battle.
Five more victories followed during 2014 and the title fight went all the way to Valencia. Miller entered the finale 11 points behind Marquez, with MCNews previewing the various championship permutations ahead of the decider.
Miller did everything he could by winning the race, but Marquez finished third and took the Moto3 World Championship by just two points.
The jump nobody was supposed to make
By then, however, Miller’s next move had already made headlines.
Rather than progress through Moto2, the 19-year-old would leap directly from Moto3 machinery into MotoGP for 2015. MCNews covered confirmation of the LCR Honda deal in September 2014, a move that made Miller the first rider to jump directly from Moto3 into the premier class.
One day after winning the 2014 Valencia Moto3 finale, Miller was already climbing aboard a 1000 cc Honda MotoGP machine and getting his first taste of MotoGP power.
The decision was controversial, and Miller’s rookie season on the Open-specification Honda was inevitably a steep learning curve. He showed enough, however, to move into the Marc VDS Honda operation for 2016.
Assen puts Miller in the MotoGP winners’ club
Then came the race that justified the gamble.
In atrocious conditions at Assen in 2016, Miller mastered a restarted wet Dutch TT, passed Marc Marquez and rode away to a sensational first MotoGP victory.
It was not merely Miller’s breakthrough. The win made him the first non-factory rider to win a MotoGP race in a decade and the first Australian to win in the premier class since Casey Stoner in 2012.
MCNews also carried Miller’s emotional post-race reflections from Assen, with the youngster admitting he was almost lost for words after finally seeing the chequered flag from the front.
Ducati turns promise into regular podium speed
A major career change followed for 2018 when Miller left Honda to join Pramac. Ducati contracted the Australian directly for his move to Pramac, beginning what would ultimately become a five-season relationship with the Bologna manufacturer.
The move proved pivotal. Miller became a regular podium threat with Pramac and his performances eventually earned him promotion to the full factory Ducati squad for 2021, following fellow Australians Troy Bayliss and Casey Stoner into the works team.
His first season in red would become the strongest of his MotoGP career.
After a difficult opening few rounds, Miller produced an emotional breakthrough at Jerez. He took the lead from Fabio Quartararo and won the 2021 Spanish Grand Prix, ending a five-year wait since Assen and heading a Ducati one-two.
A fortnight later he did it again at Le Mans, surviving changing weather, a trip through the gravel and two long-lap penalties to claim back-to-back MotoGP victories.
Miller finished fourth in the 2021 MotoGP World Championship, which remains his best season-ending championship position.
Motegi – arguably Miller’s finest Sunday
There would be one more MotoGP victory in Ducati colours, and arguably the most convincing of them all.
At Motegi in 2022, Miller simply disappeared. After working his way to the front, the Australian stretched away from the field to win the Japanese Grand Prix by 3.409 seconds.
It was the rare sort of afternoon where there was no weather lottery, attrition or tactical twist required. Miller was just faster than everybody else.
Miller himself later described it as the race of his life. He finished fifth in the 2022 World Championship before leaving Ducati at the end of the season.
A new challenge with KTM
Miller’s next gamble took him back to KTM, the manufacturer with which he had fought for the Moto3 crown almost a decade earlier.
He joined Brad Binder in the factory squad for 2023, with KTM presenting Miller as a rider capable of becoming a MotoGP race winner with three different brands.
For a while early in that first season, that prospect did not look fanciful. Miller was immediately competitive, and Jerez provided the high point, with the Australian taking third in the Sunday Grand Prix to put both factory KTMs on the podium.
Miller was understandably buoyant after that Jerez result, particularly after taking the risk of walking away from Ducati for a fresh challenge.
Ultimately, however, the KTM chapter never delivered a Grand Prix victory. Miller finished 11th in the 2023 championship and 14th in 2024 before Pedro Acosta’s promotion left him looking elsewhere for 2025.
Back to Pramac – this time with Yamaha
For a time during 2024 it appeared Miller’s MotoGP career might already have reached its conclusion, but an old relationship provided another opportunity.
Pramac was ending its long association with Ducati and beginning a new partnership with Yamaha, and in September 2024, Miller was officially confirmed alongside Miguel Oliveira for the team’s first Yamaha season.
His experience across Honda, Ducati and KTM was considered particularly valuable as Yamaha attempted to work its way back towards the front. Miller’s best Grand Prix result in 2025 was fifth at the Circuit of the Americas, while his development input helped earn him another contract for the 2026 MotoGP season.
That gave Miller another year in the premier class, this time alongside Razgatlıoğlu, but it also coincided with another major technical rebuilding phase for Yamaha.
The outright MotoGP results have been hard won, but the warmth of the two farewell statements underlines how highly Yamaha and Pramac valued Miller’s contribution even as they chose to head in a different direction for 2027.
What comes next for Jack Miller?
Miller arrived in the Grand Prix paddock as a teenager in 2011, won six Moto3 Grands Prix during his title-challenging 2014 campaign, skipped Moto2 entirely, and will complete 12 successive seasons racing against the best riders in the world in MotoGP.
At the time Yamaha confirmed his departure, his premier-class ledger stood at four victories – Assen 2016, Jerez 2021, Le Mans 2021 and Motegi 2022 – along with 23 podiums and two pole positions.
Few riders have accumulated experience across such a varied range of MotoGP machinery. Miller has raced Honda, Ducati, KTM and Yamaha prototypes, been both an independent-team underdog and a full factory Ducati rider, and played significant development roles for several manufacturers along the way.
The official facts are currently limited but significant. Miller will leave Prima Pramac Yamaha at the end of 2026; he remains determined to keep racing, but his precise 2027 destination is yet to be announced.
If WorldSBK is indeed next, it would close one extraordinary chapter without closing the book. If the eventual deal puts him on a Yamaha R1, his two Suzuka campaigns mean the bridge is already there.
But that is a story for another press release.
After 16 seasons in the Grand Prix paddock, Jack Miller’s MotoGP story appears to be approaching its final laps.
His racing story, hopefully, is not.
