Pedrosa satisfied with second place

The crowd favourite was passed by Valentino Rossi on the opening lap, and although he shadowed the Yamaha rider in the first half of the event, Pedrosa had no answer for Rossi's late-race pace.

"It was fastastic because we had a good weekend," Pedrosa told Italia1 television.

"The bike was good but the race was tough. Valentino pushed hard throughout the race so it was difficult for me to keep up the pace but I tried to finish second.

"Rossi had a very good race, he was stronger, but I'm happy because I went on the podium both in Qatar and here.

"I'm a bit sorry for the fans here, because I'm sure they wanted me to win, but the public here is good with every rider here, Spanish or not."

The result puts Pedrosa equal second in the championship with Qatar winner Casey Stoner. Both men are nine points behind Rossi, but the Italian rates Pedrosa as his main rival.

"The fight against Pedrosa was tough, I had to have a perfect race to finish ahead of him," said Rossi.

"If I must say who worries me the most, I must say Pedrosa.

"Stoner in Qatar was very good but he had a big engine advantage. Stoner is a great talent in my opinion, but I think Pedrosa is more consistent."