MotoGP Portugal: Miller fastest in FP3, world champion Mir misses Q2 cut
Pramac's Jack Miller led Tech3's Miguel Oliveira in FP3 for the Portuguese Grand Prix, as new MotoGP world champion Joan Mir missed the Q2 cut on his Suzuki

As is typical in FP3 sessions, improvements on the combined order relevant to the Q2 progression places weren't had for much of the opening half of the 45-minute outing.
Honda duo Alex Marquez and Stefan Bradl, LCR counterpart Takaaki Nakagami and home hero Miguel Oliveira on the Tech3 KTM all took turns leading the individual FP3 timesheet across the first 15 minutes.
Oliveira's 1m40.290s was beaten by Nakagami with a 1m40.114s with just over 17 minutes to go, before the Japanese rider moved up to ninth overall with a 1m39.804s on his first soft tyre time attack.
Pramac's Miller finally deposed Friday pacesetter Johann Zarco with 12 minutes remaining, guiding his Ducati GP20 to a 1m39.414s, while Petronas SRT's Fabio Quartararo moved up to third.
This stood as the benchmark until the closing two minutes, as a final salvo of laps shook up the order.
Oliveira edged ahead of Miller first with a 1m39.372s, before an injured Alex Rins took over top spot on his Suzuki with a 1m39.355s.

Oliveira's final effort of a 1m39.330s put him back on top of the pile for all of a few seconds, as Miller took the chequered flag with a 1m39.205s to end the morning 0.125 seconds clear of the field.
Rins held onto third spot ahead of Ducati's Andrea Dovizioso ahead of his final race before taking a sabbatical, with Nakagami rounding out the top five.
Fabio Quartararo has secured a place in Q2 after finishing FP3 sixth on his Petronas SRT Yamaha, though currently will not be joined by team-mate Franco Morbidelli.
The Italian was ninth on the FP3 timesheets, but his 1m39.619s was only good enough for 11th on the combined times.
KTM's Pol Espargaro survived a scary moment early in the session when he ran onto the grass on the run into Turn 7 to end FP3 seventh, with Bradl eighth and Yamaha's Maverick Vinales rounding out the top 10.
Vinales did not improve on his 1m39.536s from FP2, but still secures a place in Q2, with Zarco also holding onto a top 10 place on combined times despite ending FP3 13th.
World champion Joan Mir was only 15th in FP3 on the Suzuki and faces a tough Q1 session ahead, with the likes of LCR's Cal Crutchlow, Aprilia's Aleix Espargaro, Marquez and KTM's Brad Binder joining him in the first part of qualifying this afternoon.
Valentino Rossi's tough weekend failed to improve on Saturday morning, with the Yamaha rider 1.5s off the pace in 20th ahead of Avintia's Tito Rabat and Tech3 stand-in Mika Kallio.
MotoGP Portuguese GP FP3 results
Pos | Rider | Team | Gap |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Jack Miller | Pramac Ducati | 1m39.205s |
2 | Miguel Oliveira | Tech3 KTM | 0.125s |
3 | Alex Rins | Suzuki | 0.150s |
4 | Andrea Dovizioso | Ducati | 0.199s |
5 | Takaaki Nakagami | LCR Honda | 0.206s |
6 | Fabio Quartararo | Petronas Yamaha | 0.275s |
7 | Pol Espargaro | KTM | 0.308s |
8 | Stefan Bradl | Honda | 0.364s |
9 | Franco Morbidelli | Petronas Yamaha | 0.414s |
10 | Maverick Vinales | Yamaha | 0.488s |
11 | Cal Crutchlow | LCR Honda | 0.512s |
12 | Aleix Espargaro | Aprilia | 0.527s |
13 | Johann Zarco | Avintia Ducati | 0.596s |
14 | Lorenzo Savadori | Aprilia | 0.729s |
15 | Joan Mir | Suzuki | 0.746s |
16 | Alex Marquez | Honda | 0.800s |
17 | Brad Binder | KTM | 0.825s |
18 | Francesco Bagnaia | Pramac Ducati | 1.243s |
19 | Danilo Petrucci | Ducati | 1.279s |
20 | Valentino Rossi | Yamaha | 1.517s |
21 | Tito Rabat | Avintia Ducati | 2.787s |
22 | Mika Kallio | Tech3 KTM | 3.263s |

Previous article
Rins to evaluate shoulder operation after MotoGP season ends
Next article
Bezzecchi not given VR46 nod to make MotoGP step-up with Aprilia

About this article
Series | MotoGP |
Drivers | Joan Mir , Jack Miller |
Teams | AB Motoracing |
Author | Lewis Duncan |
MotoGP Portugal: Miller fastest in FP3, world champion Mir misses Q2 cut
Trending
Where does Honda's new MotoGP signing sit ahead of its king's return?
Pol Espargaro’s first results as a Honda MotoGP rider may not appear special. But dig a little deeper and a clearer picture of his performance emerges. And, as Lewis Duncan writes, it’s cause for celebration at Honda with the return of Marc Marquez set to provide Espargaro with the reference he has been missing so far this year
The "pit bull" MotoGP rookie already drawing legendary comparisons
MotoGP’s 2021 rookie crop is one of the strongest in recent years, but one is already standing out. Jorge Martin’s Doha GP heroics have courted many to compare him to numerous MotoGP legends. Autosport spoke to Pramac boss Francesco Guidotti to find out why MotoGP’s latest Spanish star is already making such an impact
Why MotoGP's stewards must revisit Miller and Mir's Losail clash
Despite Suzuki’s decision not to appeal against Race Direction’s refusal to penalise Jack Miller following the incident with Joan Mir in Losail, something must be done to avoid a repeat of such an incident, which could have easily ended in tragedy
Has Yamaha banished its demons with its 2021 MotoGP bike?
Against the expected run of play at Qatar's Losail circuit, both Yamaha riders Maverick Vinales and Fabio Quartararo carved through a resolute Ducati defence to secure back-to-back MotoGP wins for the Japanese marque. After a difficult 2020, it appears that Yamaha has swaggered back into championship contention
Why MotoGP’s top gun looks more dangerous at the Doha GP
Lightning hasn't struck twice for Maverick Vinales since 2017 and his wayward form of recent years makes predicting how he'll fare each MotoGP race weekend tricky. But fresh from his Qatar GP win, Vinales looks like an even more dangerous prospect for the Doha GP following an intriguing Friday practice
Why MotoGP’s new Amazon series is long overdue
OPINION: MotoGP is getting its own version of Drive to Survive on Amazon Prime at some point in the near future. It was news welcomed by the grid’s leading riders. And following the impact DTS has had on Formula 1, MotoGP desperately needs the same boost.
Did the Qatar GP hint at Ducati’s true MotoGP leader?
OPINION: Johann Zarco talked a big game pre-season, and is so far vindicating himself as a factory rider at Pramac after finishing the Qatar GP as top Ducati in second. And contrasting his and Jack Miller's weekends and their approaches, is Zarco emerging as Ducati's true MotoGP leader?
The key changes behind the latest 'return of the Mack'
Maverick Vinales’s authoritative victory at the MotoGP season opener came during a period of personal and professional change for the Yamaha rider. Can it be the springboard for a title challenge?