How Ducati can channel Stoner with its latest MotoGP Aussie

Australians on factory red Ducati MotoGP bikes conjure up iconic images of Casey Stoner's triumphs with the marque from 2007-2010 (which included Ducati's only MotoGP riders' title to date), and Troy Bayliss' famous Valencia victory as a stand-in at the 2006 Valencia Grand Prix (alongside his three World Superbike championship wins in red).

That Jack Miller's #43 is decorated in the Australian flag on the front of the factory Ducati he will ride in 2021 only brings those iconic images flooding back.

The 2014 Moto3 world championship runner-up is the third Aussie to climb aboard the Borgo Panigale's MotoGP weapon since it joined the series in 2003, and naturally at the team's launch event for the 2021 season on Tuesday questions relating to pressure from the weight of a nation's expectations quickly arose.

"For me, a big motivation was growing up watching guys like Troy and Casey ride in these colours, that's why I think it means something extra-special for me as it's something I grew up idolising," Miller tells the virtually assembled media.

"Pressure is what you put on yourself, I think I'm my own biggest critic. I put enough pressure on myself as is, I don't need to go looking to try and find it. I don't think it gives me any extra pressure.

"Those guys were and still are fantastic motorcycle riders and I'm just trying to be the best I can be, but for sure you want to arrive on those guys' level. But only time will tell."

That's an incredibly mature answer from a rider who has garnered something of a reputation among certain sections of the MotoGP fanbase and other onlookers.

Despite being just 26 years old, Miller is cut from an old school cloth - which is probably why both he and Yamaha's new test rider Cal Crutchlow formed such a tight bond from their days as LCR team-mates back in 2015. Miller, much like Crutchlow, is an honest, frank character, not afraid to say what's on his mind and isn't even remotely ashamed about that. It's led to some cracking comments to the press over the years, not least last year when the subject of MotoGP's much-maligned yellow flag rule came up for discussion.

In his early days in MotoGP, when Honda plucked him straight out of Moto3 on a three-year deal for 2015, Miller did court a legion of disgruntled critics for his antics on and off-track.

In retrospect, while certainly he can't be totally absolved of this, some slack from his current detractors needs to be given. He was thrown in very much at the deep-end, left to try and stay afloat wearing lead water wings - the open-class RC213V-RS he was placed onto not worthy of being dubbed a MotoGP bike.

"Being on one-year contracts for the last three years has been what it is, but I think that helps to know that you've got to prove your worth. That's really helped me mature into the rider I think I am" Jack Miller

A move to Marc VDS on a proper RC213V for 2016 netted him a shock maiden win in the wet Dutch TT - a result he famously celebrated with a 'shoey'. He said immediately afterwards he'd shown people he wasn't "an idiot", and his celebration proved just that - it was a nod to a fine Honda slapped him with the year before when he did a 'shoey' during an after-party.

Over the next season-and-a-bit he continued to evolve to become a rider desired by Ducati, with Miller joining Pramac in 2018 and riding works-supported Desmosedicis from 2019 - on which he has tallied up nine podiums and helped Ducati to last year's constructors' title. Throw in the development work he'd done in his time at Pramac, and before the 2020 season had even started Ducati was convinced he was the rider to lead its factory effort.

As Miller explains, hooking up with Ducati has very much moulded him into the mature, factory leader he is now.

"They've given me the tools to grow," he said when asked by Autosport if Ducati had made him a more complete rider. "It's never easy. Being on one-year contracts for the last three years has been what it is, but I think that helps to know that you've got to prove your worth. That's really helped me mature into the rider I think I am.

"And just getting older, I think that's definitely helped, not being a kid anymore. But also, them giving me the tools to keep growing, where in the Ducati system if you're doing well and you're showing them you're doing well on your machinery, the updates always come. And I think they really help to grow a rider like that."

Every rider on the current grid has earned their seat, but if there's one rider who was owed his, there's a strong case to be made for Miller. During the 2019 Austrian GP weekend Ducati was willing to cut him loose as it made an attempt to correct the error it made in ousting Jorge Lorenzo from its line-up for 2019.

With the factory seats already sorted, a successful rekindling of the relationship with triple MotoGP world champion Lorenzo would have had him placed at Pramac in Miller's seat as Francesco Bagnaia already had a 2020 deal.

As all this swirled, Miller put his faith in Pramac boss Paolo Campinoti to sort things out, and rebuffed KTM's advances to replace the departed Johann Zarco for 2020, the Frenchman having quit his two-year deal after that Austrian GP weekend. Ultimately Lorenzo elected to see out his two-year Honda deal, before calling it quits at the end of the year, while Miller from the next round at Silverstone had put water under the bridge and signed a new Pramac contract.

That incident is pertinent when you consider the fallout between Andrea Dovizioso and Ducati, particularly general manager Gigi Dall'Igna, and also when you look at how mishandling of its riders led to Stoner walking to Honda for 2011 and ushering in a barren spell for Ducati which lasted until 2016 (in Austria, of all places).

Ducati has an exciting line-up on its hands throughout the factory, Pramac and Avintia teams, with Miller, Bagnaia, Jorge Martin, Enea Bastianini and Luca Marini representing a real future-looking approach. Although only 30, Pramac's Zarco is very much Ducati's elder statesman in 2021. It must learn from its past errors with Stoner and how it handled the Dovizioso situation (something which wasn't helped by the Lorenzo/Pramac thing) to ensure this line-up remains a long-term endeavour.

PLUS: How Ducati rebuilt Zarco into a factory MotoGP rider

And although Miller is yet to win a race on a Ducati despite being on a works bike for the past two years, many in the paddock do see him as real title threat this year.

"I honestly believe that the biggest difficulties will come from Ducati," Vinales told Moto.it recently. "When I found myself fighting with them it was always very difficult to overcome them. I think Miller will be the real surprise this year."

With all that has just been written about Miller, you might then feel that he maybe isn't the best person to have in what has proven to be a diplomatically precarious environment at points over the last decade or so. But Miller's personality is a big attraction to Ducati management, with Dall'Igna even admitting it's "important" for both rider and team.

"We're very happy also because Jack is not only a very talented rider, but he has a very strong personality" Paolo Ciabatti

"Jack has a quite strong character, and I think this is important for a rider that wants to achieve good results," Dall'Igna said when asked by Autosport if Miller's personality is exactly what Ducati needs.

"I think that we worked quite well with him in the past three years. We know him very well and he knows very well us, and so I think that we can work quite well together. Also, Pecco [Bagnaia] every time tells us what he thinks. I think it's important because we have to tell each other what we think in order to evolve the bike, so I'm really happy if the rider tells me the truth."

Sporting director Paolo Ciabatti added: "We're very happy also because Jack is not only a very talented rider, but he has a very strong personality. So, I'm pretty sure it will be interesting also for you guys [the media], because he says what he thinks and he's a great guy. I think we have a great combination between the two; Pecco is a little bit less outspoken than Jack, but I think it's a good mix and we're going to have fun this year also off the track."

If you were to draw parallels, Miller is in many ways like 2019 British Superbike champion and MotoGP podium finisher Scott Redding: both, in just the way they go about their business, lead people to believe they're not very clever, when of course this couldn't be further from the truth. It's a funny thing, because society yearns for the honest, heart-on-sleeve types, yet vilifies them when they emerge.

Miller said at the end of last season he felt his time at Pramac had "closed a few mouths". Now equipped with the resources and manpower of a factory team, Miller is set to fully acquit himself to those who still doubt he's a top MotoGP rider...