Ducati a genuine MotoGP title chance, says Honda's Marc Marquez

Dovizioso has finished second in the opening two grands prix in Qatar and America, putting him second in the standings at present - one point behind leader Valentino Rossi and four ahead of Marquez.

Although Honda rider Marquez was able to dominate at Austin for a third straight year last weekend, he said the fact Dovizioso's Ducati was able to beat Rossi's Yamaha to second suggested the Italian bike's Losail pace was no fluke.

"At the moment, you are looking to Andrea and Valentino but with all of my respect to Andrea, Valentino will be very strong," Marquez said when asked who he saw as his title rivals.

"But also with Andrea, there was a question mark in Qatar. [At Austin] he was really strong in the practice but it looked like he could struggle [in the race].

"But in the race, he pushed me for some laps and the bike has good potential.

"We need to keep focus on him and Valentino but also Jorge [Lorenzo] will be there."

Marquez said the return of Ducati to the frontrunning pack was going to make it harder to get away with poor races, noting that he could only recover to fifth in Qatar after his first-lap error.

"For the championship it is much better because if you have a mistake like I did in Qatar, last year it would be easier for me to finish on the podium," he said.

"But if you don't find the correct set-up, you can finish fifth or sixth and lose a lot points.

"This is good because the championship will be more open until the end."

BRAKING DUCATI'S WEAK POINT

Dovizioso agreed that the Austin performance validated Ducati's revival, though he highlighted braking performance as an area where it still lost out to Honda and Yamaha.

"It's really special because it confirms just how good the bike is," he said of his second place in America.

"I believe we need to improve small things in the brake and traction area front on every track, but the speed is there so it's nice to be in this situation.

"Our power compared to Valentino in fourth, fifth and sixth gear is better but our braking is not the best. It's good but it's still not enough.

"We had to brake really on the limit, especially in the hard braking going from sixth to first but our engine along the straight is faster."