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Jack Miller doesn’t need a king’s advice

AAP

AAP

Australian motorcycling legend Mick Doohan has no advice for teenager Jack Miller ahead of his MotoGP debut next season.

Not because he has none, it’s because Miller doesn’t need it.

The five-time world champion was on hand at Phillip Island to see the 19-year-old Queenslander set the fastest time in Friday afternoon’s Moto3 practice session.

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Miller emerged as a genuine title challenger this season in the third-tier category and has been signed by Honda to race in MotoGP from 2015.

So impressive has his progress been that Doohan sees no need to stick his nose in.

“There’s no advice I can really give him, the reason he’s in MotoGP is everything he’s done,” he said.

“I think he’s doing a great job.

“He’s young, a lot of people are saying perhaps the jump straight from Moto3 to MotoGP isn’t the right thing

“To me, he knows how to ride a bike, he knows the circuits.

“So if there’s only one thing he has to understand and that’s the bike.”

Doohan, who won the race and the championship for Honda on the Island in 1998, said Miller’s chief concern would be cooling his heels if the bike didn’t match his talent.

“The biggest thing he’ll have to worry about is containing his enthusiasm,” he said.

“If the bike’s not up to winning the race, (but) he feels comfortable on the bike believing he can win the race against the guy on a superior motorcycle – that’s the only thing that can do his confidence in, if he’s crashing a little bit too often trying to over-ride the machine.”

Speaking at the unveiling of three bronze busts of Australia’s three motorcycling world champions – himself, Wayne Gardner and Casey Stoner, Doohan said he felt very honoured.

“The only thing we need is more of them,” he said.

The world champion trio now have the replicas to go with parts of the track named after them.

The main straight at the Phillip Island circuit is known as Gardner Straight.

Turn one is Doohan Corner, with Stoner Corner coming shortly after, on turn three.

The five-time world champion declined suggest who might win a pretend race between the three champs at the peak of their powers.

“Unfortunately it’s a bit like playing off tennis players from the 70s, 80s, 90s and today,” Doohan said.

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