Dovizioso anticipated last-corner move

The two Italians had a lengthy battle at Estoril, which looked to have been resolved when Dovizioso took his works Honda past Simoncelli's satellite bike into the first corner two laps from the end.

But Simoncelli then struck back with an outbraking dive at the chicane on the last lap and seemed to be on course for his first MotoGP podium - only for Dovizioso to get a better exit from the last corner and edge past as they crossed the line.

"It's always not easy to fight with Marco because he's really aggressive," said Dovizioso.

"I needed to make a strategy. Every time at the chicane he overtook me, but I knew at the last corner I could overtake him.

"I tried to be in front, but he overtook me and I used the last corner to try to exit faster."

The Italian added that while he was delighted with the position, the 26-second gap to winner Jorge Lorenzo was a cause for concern.

"I'm really happy with the third position, it was important to get back on the podium," said Dovizioso.

"We can't be happy about the pace because we were a lot of seconds from Lorenzo and Valentino [Rossi]."