Rossi v Stoner getting more interesting already!

Well the Qatar test is done, and things at the front are looking as interesting as we'd hoped.

As expected Stoner is fastest, doing blistering lap times. Rossi doesn't seem to have the lap time, but as ever is working more on absolute race pace. The two approaches couldn't be more different.

Fingers crossed for more races like the Laguna round last year.

The one added dimension I've picked up for 2009 - which actually came from Lorenzo, not Rossi - is the possible wheelie problems the new M1 is experiencing.

My understanding is the new chassis has a shorter wheelbase due in part to a shorter swing arm. The desired effects on handling are all there for Rossi and Lorenzo. And so are the niggles - mainly a tendency to wheelie more.

Yamaha of course knew this would happen and have designed a new electronic system to control this, but the impression I have is that this isn't working.

One potentially vital consequence of this is the starts.

Rossi has never been the best starter. For years he has made an art form of wining races by passing most of the field in a few short laps. But last year with Stoner's blistering pace Rossi needed to concentrate more on starts and make sure he was away at the front and able to stick to Stoner like glue - preventing him from running away at the front. Laguna being the case in point.

But if they are experiencing wheelie problems, this will surely make the task much harder. And potentially we could see Stoner getting away at the front more.

We know he can do this. We also know that if Stoner hadn't made the mistakes he made trying to break the field totally at tracks like Brno last year (where he crashed with an early lead of a second or so) he could have been hard to beat.

So the key dynamic still stands. Stoner is faster. But last year he seemed to believe that if Rossi was close, Rossi would win. That's my view on why Stoner was so determined to beat him by the biggest possible margin in every session, on every lap.

Fans will be hoping for a few close fights between Rossi and Stoner on track. But the real fight is in the mind, and in the detail of the lap and spit times.

Thank god the Eurosport coverage is back - as this detail is all important.

And then of course there is Lorenzo. His role in all this could well be crucial.

Bring it on!