Rossi blames fading tyres for third

A day after admitting that he had requested a supply of Bridgestone tyres for 2008, Rossi blamed his Michelins for his inability to match the Ducatis at Phillip Island.

The Yamaha rider battled for third with Dani Pedrosa early on, then gained a position when Nicky Hayden retired only to be passed by Loris Capirossi in the closing stages.

"I tried a lot but unfortunately I made a mistake after two or three laps and I lost a bit of contact with Nicky and Casey," he said in the post-race press conference.

"My rhythm was not so bad. I stayed quite close, but after some laps I started to spin too much on the left and I had to slow down."

Rossi told the BBC that he had initially hoped to fight back after being passed by Capirossi.

"At one moment I thought it was possible to fight with Loris until the end, but no way," he said.

"I am another step down. I spin very hard everywhere, so I lose a lot of time. Third place is the best we could do."

But he took some consolation from maintaining his strong record at Phillip Island - where he has finished on the podium in every MotoGP start, including a run of five straight victories between 2001 and 2005.

"To arrive on the podium here at Phillip Island is always a great pleasure because you have a lot of crowd and it's always like a party," Rossi said.