Dovizioso: Mugello MotoGP win doesn't signal Ducati title bid

Dovizioso claimed his third MotoGP win, and his first in dry conditions, at Mugello on Sunday.

Beating Maverick Vinales into second place also made Dovizioso the Yamaha rider's closest rival in the standings, 26 points adrift.

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But Dovizioso remains wary of the Ducati's mid-corner weakness, and does not believe it has suddenly found a cure to that to win its home race.

"Every weekend is a different story so we have to be positive," he said.

"This result for sure will make an effect, but we didn't change something special on the bike, that's why I can't say 'now we fight for the championship'.

"I'm always realistic. A lot of people call me negative, but I call it realistic.

"And until now, we can be really fast in some races but our base in 18 races is not good enough.

"Now we have a race next weekend [at Barcelona], so we will see very easily in a completely different track where the grip is very low and the asphalt is not so good.

"Last year we struggled a lot, so we will see soon our competitiveness.

"We are second in the championship, so we are not too bad.

"But to think about fighting with them every weekend and to arrive at the end of the season and fight for the championship, it will be difficult."

Ducati won for the first time since 2010 last season, with Dovizioso and former team-mate Andrea Iannone each taking a victory.

It has not taken a significant-enough step to be a regular 2017 frontrunner, with Dovizioso's front-row start at Mugello its first of the season, while it had just two podiums to its name prior to his win.

Yamaha with three victories, Honda two and now Ducati have won races this year, and Dovizioso feels momentum will shift circuit to circuit.

"I think it's a lot about the technical situation," he said.

"For example, normally it's Yamaha and Honda, [Mugello is] the first time for us to really fight for the victory.

"But also, because everybody's very, very close, I think small things can make a big difference at the end of the race.

"Sometimes maybe the bikes are not so different, but the way the riders arrive to the weekend, the layout of the track, the feeling or if you make a crash sometimes can make a bigger gap."