Jack Miller will race for Prima Pramac Racing in the 2026 MotoGP season on a one-year factory Yamaha contract worth £2.5 million. The 30-year-old Australian secured the deal on 4 September 2025 after publicly pressuring the manufacturer during contract negotiations, with his experience racing V4 engines at Honda, Ducati and KTM proving essential to Yamaha’s switch from inline-four power.
Pramac operates as Yamaha’s satellite team for 2026 after switching from Ducati. Miller brings technical knowledge none of Yamaha’s other riders possess. Fabio Quartararo has never ridden anything except inline-four Yamahas. Alex Rins managed one injury-hit season on a V4 Honda in 2023. Miller won races and took podiums across nine seasons on V4 machinery from three different manufacturers. When Yamaha announced the contract, that background became their stated reason for choosing him over younger alternatives.
The Pramac rider had forced the decision. At the Hungarian Grand Prix in August, he told reporters: “I have options outside of Yamaha, and I’m going to move there. It will be outside of this paddock, clearly.” BMW’s World Superbike programme wanted him as Toprak Razgatlioglu’s replacement. He set a deadline. Yamaha responded with a one-year deal expiring in December 2026.
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The Michelin Rear Tyre Problem That Killed Yamaha’s Inline Four
Yamaha officially stopped production of the inline-four M1 after the Valencia Grand Prix on 17 November 2025. The engine that won eight riders’ championships between 2004 and 2021 competed in its 429th and final race, ending 23 years of production.
Technical director Massimo Bartolini cited acceleration, cornering behaviour and modern tyre characteristics as factors. Miller gave a more specific explanation to Crash.net.
“The rear tyre. I mean, it’s a clear indication. The rear tyre changed two or three years ago. It was always sort of leaning that way, the more Michelin developed this rear tyre. But to get the outright potential out of the current rear tyre, you need to have the thing on the ground. You need to be using the rear tyre for stopping, mid-corner and acceleration.”
V4 bikes from Ducati, Aprilia, Honda and KTM could do that. Yamaha’s inline four struggled. Miller explained: “When the tracks don’t have the best grip or the others can’t use the soft rear, we tend to have a better showing. Because we’re not getting the full benefit out of the soft tyre like the others, we don’t notice it as much when we’re not using it.”
The Iwata factory had built a machine that looked competitive only when rivals had problems. Marc Marquez took his seventh championship for Ducati in 2025 before crashing out at Indonesia. Aprilia beat Yamaha in the constructors’ standings for a third straight year.
Valencia Test Shows V4 Prototype Needs Major Work
The official post-season test at Valencia on 19 November gave Miller his first extended running on the V4. He completed 51 laps, placing 20th overall with a best time of 1:30.864s, 1.491 seconds behind leader Raul Fernandez on the Trackhouse Aprilia.
Quartararo recorded the fastest Yamaha lap at 1:29.927s for 15th position, 0.554s from top spot. Three-time WorldSBK champion Razgatlioglu, debuting on MotoGP machinery as Miller’s 2026 teammate, ended the session 18th after 53 laps.
Valencia V4 Test Times:
- Miller: 20th, 1:30.864s, 51 laps, +1.491s
- Quartararo: 15th, 1:29.927s, 46 laps, +0.554s
- Razgatlioglu: 18th, 1:30.667s, 53 laps, +1.294s
- Rins: 19th, 1:30.720s, 33 laps, +1.347s
“It was a busy day as we tried to understand the new bike and provide solid feedback,” Miller told MotoGP.com. “There’s a lot to do, and we’re working on it. This bike has only a few days of life so far, and it’s still very much a work in progress, but we’ll keep pushing.”
He joked about wanting “25 horsepower more” before Sepang testing begins in January. The electronics package needs major refinement. Yamaha runs the engine in conservative mode with power deliberately restricted. Front-end feel, the inline four’s defining characteristic, doesn’t exist on the V4 prototype yet. The bike performs well in a narrow working window but struggles outside it.
Yamaha held a private test at Valencia on 20 November. The team has approximately five weeks from the Sepang shakedown on 29 January to the season opener at Thailand on 1 March.
Quartararo’s “Worse” Assessment Creates Tension With Factory
Quartararo tested the V4 first at Misano in September during the post-race session. He told Motorsport.com: “At the moment, it’s worse. In Barcelona, we felt some difference, that for me was in a better way. But in Barcelona the track is really smooth.”
The 2021 world champion expanded: “I don’t think that the V4 engine will resolve all our problems because we still find the same problems in Barcelona and here. It’s not really a matter of front feeling, it’s a matter of turning.”
Managing director Paolo Pavesio responded in December, telling Speedweek: “Complaining too much in public doesn’t help the company’s commitment.”
The Race reported in November that Yamaha engineers believe Quartararo’s development input altered the inline four away from the manufacturer’s traditional philosophy. Test riders Andrea Dovizioso and Augusto Fernandez led the V4 programme without his involvement. Sources told the publication that staff view the V4 as closer to authentic Yamaha characteristics than the current bike.
Quartararo ended the 2025 season ninth in the championship, 122 points ahead of Miller in 17th. Their opposing views on the V4’s potential sit alongside that championship gap.
Why Yamaha Kept Miller Despite Worst Season Since 2016
Miller crashed 12 times in 2025, equal most on the grid with Marco Bezzecchi and Franco Morbidelli. Three straight retirements at Lusail, Jerez and Le Mans started the season badly. His best result was fifth at Circuit of the Americas in April. The 52-point total marked his worst championship performance since 2016.
He did beat wildcard Augusto Fernandez in all three races the test rider competed. When Yamaha assessed contract options in August, that comparison mattered. So did the technical knowledge from racing different V4 configurations. Quartararo has never ridden anything except Yamahas. Rins spent most of his career on Suzuki’s inline four. For a satellite team developing a V4 alongside rookie Razgatlioglu, Miller’s experience outweighed recent results.
The 2027 Regulation Change That Makes This Season Critical
Miller’s contract runs through December 2026 with no extension option. MotoGP switches to 850cc engines and Pirelli tyres for 2027, dropping capacity to reduce straight-line speeds and improve overtaking opportunities. The change forces manufacturers to completely rethink power delivery and chassis design for a formula that will run for several seasons.
Teams building 2027 bikes want riders who can contribute to multi-year development programmes. At 30 years old after placing 17th in 2025, Miller needs strong results this season to secure a future beyond December.
Izan Guevara threatens that future directly. The 20-year-old Spaniard won his first Moto2 race at Valencia on 17 November, then tested Yamaha’s 2026 machinery two days later during the post-race session. Pramac boss Gino Borsoi told the factory’s Instagram: “Honestly speaking, he had a really good test. Straight away, after just a few laps, he was already on line with the other MotoGP riders.” Borsoi confirmed Guevara is under consideration for 2027.
Razgatlioglu signed a multi-year deal securing his Pramac seat through the regulation change. Only one satellite team position will open for 2027. If the Turkish star adapts quickly and consistently beats Miller, the 30-year-old faces unemployment in a paddock with no vacant seats.
Miller acknowledged the situation when his contract hung in uncertainty last August: “I wanted to contribute to the development of the V4 engine. But if they don’t see it that way, I’ll try something else.”
Testing Programme and Season Opener
Prima Pramac Yamaha presents their 2026 livery in Siena on 13 January. The team then travels to Malaysia for the Sepang Shakedown from 29-31 January, when test riders, rookies and concession manufacturers get track time. Razgatlioglu will have his first extended V4 running during those three days before the official test brings all race riders together from 3-5 February. Miller works with crew chief Giacomo Guidotti for a second season.
Yamaha holds Rank D concession status for 2026, which grants unlimited testing throughout the season. The Japanese factory finished last in the 2025 constructors’ championship. Quartararo secured their only dry-weather podium at Jerez, while a ride-height device issue caused his retirement from the lead at Silverstone.
The official season launch takes place in Kuala Lumpur on 6-7 February, immediately after Sepang testing. Final pre-season running happens at Buriram on 21-22 February. The Thai Grand Prix opens the championship one week later, from 27 February to 1 March.
Miller has 12 months and 22 races to prove Yamaha’s V4 works. Razgatlioglu arrives on a long-term deal with factory backing. Guevara waits in Moto2, impressing during his test. The 2027 regulation change means manufacturers will prioritize youth over experience. Miller’s career extension depends on results, not potential.
