Jack Miller blames ride-height device for Johann…

Jack Miller blames ride-height device for Johann Zarco's Barcelona crash

Jack Miller has blamed ride-height devices for the incident at the Catalan Grand Prix that has put Johann Zarco out of action for several races.

The Australian's take on the first-corner accident went against the grain of some other riders in the paddock, including Francesco Bagnaia, Marco Bezzecchi and Fabio Di Giannantonio - all of whom took a more cautious line as they spoke to the press ahead of this weekend's Italian Grand Prix.

Miller was in a talkative mood at Mugello on Thursday, with rider safety and first-corner incidents still the hottest topic in the paddock as the circus came together for the first time since the controversial Barcelona event 11 days earlier.

Also on Thursday, Zarco's LCR Honda team boss Lucio Cecchinello said his man would be certainly need "a couple of months" to recover from the knee operation required following the accident shortly the second restart. An accident Miller believes had everything to do with the technology set to exit the MotoGP stage after this season.

"I've been quite vocal about the ride-height device," said the Pramac Yamaha rider. "I believe the reason why everything is even more chaotic at Turn 1 is because of the right height device. Because everybody has it.

"Nobody has a clear advantage anymore. So, we're all arriving [at the first corner] at the same time. We're all having to grab abnormal amounts of brake to, first of all, get the rear to recover and, second of all, to unlock the front from 130mm.

"The incident with Johann... you see the gap to the rider in front sort of close and then stabilise and then close again. And that's the inconsistency on the brakes with not having the same reaction. And that is simply a ride-height device issue.

"Barcelona, historically, has always been a bad one at Turn 1. So I think that intensifies it a little bit more, you know, because you arrive so quickly."

While Miller was speaking in his media 'scrum', his peers Bagnaia, Bezzecchi and Di Giannantonio shied away from such comments in the more formal setting of the press conference.

Di Giannantonio and Bezzecchi at the press conference (Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / LAT Images / via Getty Images)

The trio wasn't asked about Zarco's accident specifically, but about whether ride-height devices were a factor in the ongoing high number of first-corner incidents.

"The first corner after the start is dangerous with any bike," said Bezzecchi. "The MotoGP bike is quicker than Moto2 or Moto3, so the braking is very difficult. It's not because of the device, I think."

Di Giannantonio was similarly circumspect: "No, I don't think that devices make a big difference. At the end, everybody is the same. Also, if you look at superbikes, which are pretty fast, like us, in the first corner, sometimes you can see a few disasters."

The real factors, said the Roman, were simply the competitive instinct to gain a first-corner advantage and the fact that riders struggle to find braking points when arriving at the first corner from a standing start - something they don't get to practice much during a race weekend.

While Bagnaia made sure to mention the specific difficulties of disengaging the ride-height device at Le Mans, Silverstone and Phillip Island, his general view was that "devices are not more unsafe... it's not because of the devices that the level of injuries have increased.

"Incidents at the first corner were always there from the first race we had - and will always be there."

Was this diplomacy on the part of the three Italians? Judging by some of Miller's other remarks, you could make a case for that. Responding to a question about whether riders' views should be listened to, he delved into his mysterious toolbox of Queensland metaphors to suggest keeping quiet had its merits.

"The squeaky wheel gets the grease, but sometimes the squeaky wheel gets replaced," explained the 31-year-old.