Australian Jack Miller has endured a rocky start to the final Australian MotoGP at Phillip Island, suffering a pair of crashes and a qualifying setback.
The 31-year-old, who is swapping MotoGP for Superbikes at the end of the season, went to the top of the leaderboard in first practice with just under four minutes remaining.
But he lost control of his Yamaha into the first corner while TV pictures were showing his crew chief Giacomo Guidotti.
Miller rolled heavily but was able to return to his feet, giving a thumbs-up to medical staff before being given a ride back to the garage.
“Washing machine crash for Miller. Talk about highs and lows, the highs and lows for Jack Miller,” Matt Birt said in commentary.
“He had just set the fastest time of the morning so far and then out wide. Was he caught there by a gust of wind? Because he was really wide trying to stay committed.
“Tried to save it, no coming back. That’s a fast old get-off — a bumpy ride. That would’ve rattled his cage a little bit.”
Replays showed Miller, who was on a new set of tyres, left the bike travelling at least 160km/h.
Miller’s time ended up third-best for the session behind championship contender Marc Marquez and last year’s race winner Raul Fernandez.
But things got worse later in the day with Miller losing control again.
The 31-year-old did get back up and keep riding, but was only able to record the 12th fastest lap.
The result is a huge blow for the Australian, as he wanted to finish in the top 10 to bypass qualifying session one on Saturday morning and automatically advance to session two.
Only the top two riders from session one make the next round that determines who starts on the front row.
Last year, Miller earned a front row start and became the first Australian to achieve that feat at the Australian GP since the great Casey Stoner in 2012.
But he failed to finish the main race because of a crash on lap six.
Miller won at Phillip Island in Moto3 and stood on the MotoGP podium in 2019.
He would dearly love to get back there on an emotional weekend for the Australian motorcycle community — and forecast wet weather could also play into his hands.
Conditions will change wildly on Saturday with showers and up to 20mm of rain set to affect the sprint race.
Up to 15-30mm is forecast to fall on Sunday for the Island’s last grand prix before MotoGP moves to Adelaide next year.
Senna Agius, who won last year’s Moto2 race at Phillip Island, will step up to MotoGP next year to replace Miller as the lone Australian on the grid.
“It’s sad to see him go,” Agius told Fox Sports.
“I would love to be on the grid for him. He’s one of my great mates, I would’ve liked nothing more than for us to be together but it’s not for me.”
Miller said Agius will thrive on the bigger bikes.
“(Australian) MotoGP is in safe hands with Senna,” he said.
Marco Bezzecchi was fastest in the second practice session with Fernandez and Marcquez second and third.
Fernandez, riding with injured fingers, had crashed in first practice but appeared untroubled afterwards.
Get the latest news from thewest.com.au in your inbox.
Sign up for our emails