Ducati boss cautious on Rossi future talk

Rossi suggested he is ready to leave Yamaha at the end of 2008 if his bike doesn't prove competitive next season.

"If it gets better I can wait another year. If not there is nothing left to do," Rossi told Gazzetta dello Sport. "I have a good relationship with both (Ducati and Honda), but definitely I would prefer Ducati because they are Italian."

Suppo knows Italian fans would welcome the move, but the Ducati boss is cautious about the prospect of the seven-time champion riding for them.

"It's definitely too early to talk about 2009," Suppo told Gazzetta dello Sport. "And then I must be careful: whether I say a yes or a no, it will be interpreted in any case in a misleading way.

"I can certainly say that, from some fringes of our fans, we get the request, or rather the desire, to see Rossi on our bike, in order to come up with a fight with Stoner on truly equal footing.

"We've never talked about it explicitly, but like every racing rider, Stoner has always made it clear that as far as he's concerned he can be teamed up with anyone. In my opinion he is in such a state of grace that he wouldn't be afraid to be challenged.

"We have a deal for the next two years with Marco Melandri, we count a lot on him, and a three-year deal with Stoner. We'd like to extend it with Casey (Stoner), and maybe he'd like that too, as one of his idols is Mick Doohan, who was always with Honda.

"Anything can change, but Casey seems willing to go his way with us."

Suppo also denied rumours that Ducati are preparing a third bike for Rossi for 2008.

"I've heard this rumour too and I really can't figure out where it originated from," he added. "I don't think something like this could be done without me knowing about it. So I say that it's absolutely impossible, for the simple reason that the bike doesn't exist.

"The parts to build it have simply not been ordered. At the moment the mechanics are building the bikes, but they are Casey's and Marco's which will have their debut at the end of the month in Jerez."

He added: "That was an operation meant to be done with Loris (Capirossi), who had been with us for five years, from our debut to now. Frankly thinking of something like that seems hasty to me. At least at the moment: Valentino himself says that it's absurd. Season apart, let's call it a mid-summer dream.

"I'm happy about the 9 (marks out of 10) Rossi gave us: it shows the appreciation for the work done this year. Besides, it's true that that admiration goes two-ways.

"However, if he marked his season with an 8, he should have given Casey a 10 since he has made no mistakes."