1. Jack Miller (Moto3)
Many picked Jack Miller as their pre-season favourite for the Moto3 championship and the opening two races showed you exactly why as the Australian claimed back-to-back victories. Miller had found the going a little tougher in Argentina and Spain with Romano Fenati using a combination of brute force and sheer brilliance to secure a brace of his own. Le Mans though saw the return of Miller at his sensational best.
The strength of the Honda motorcycles was evident in qualifying as Efren Vazquez took his first career pole position and with the NSF250R outgunning Miller’s KTM in a straight line, it was tough to see a way Miller could overcome them. What he lacked in power, Jack made up for in skill and race craft and on the penultimate lap, he put his plan into action.
Jack started the 23rd lap in third spot with Vazquez and Alex Rins disputing the lead but when the leader ran wide into Musée, the opportunistic Miller took advantage to dive past the pair of them with Rins hung out to dry on the outside of Garage Vert. Honda power ensured Vazquez breezed past the KTM on the approach to Chemin Aux Boeufs on the final lap but Jack’s mastery on the brakes has been evident all year, and Vazquez was powerless to defend against it.
Efren had one last push to try and deny the championship with a charge up the inside of turn nine but Miller was certainly in no mood to be pushed around and chopped the nose off the Saxoprint rider. A race, that Jack had little right to win, was won.
(Photo Credit: MotoGP.com)
