Rossi fears tyres will be critical

The former world champion could only manage sixth on the grid at the Sachsenring, while his Bridgestone-shod title rival Casey Stoner has been fastest in every session and secured his second pole of the year.

Rossi said the new restrictions on the number of compounds that riders can use in a GP weekend had really hampered him in Germany.

"I'm starting in sixth spot because the qualifying tyre couldn't last for an entire lap," Rossi confirmed to Italia1 television.

"I could do well up until T3, but in T4 I had already worn out the left side so I had to slow down a bit.

"We'll have to have a look at the tyres. Unfortunately because of this rule book we had very few of the tyres - especially the front ones - with which I could go fairly well, so we could use them only a few times to see how the bike would go. The rest of the time we had to use other tyres that don't give me the same feeling.

"We'll have to make a choice on the rear tyre. It's a bit critical with this heat as it's 30 laps."

The Italian remained optimistic that he could fare better in the race. He was also buoyed by fellow Michelin-runner Dani Pedrosa's performance, as the Repsol Honda rider took second on the grid, just 0.004 seconds slower than Stoner.

"As pace is concerned it isn't bad, we'll have to see tomorrow if we can do better. There are still some modifications to do," Rossi said.

"This afternoon Pedrosa went very quick with the Michelins, so the potential is there."

He conceded that it could be difficult to come through the field on the twisty Sachsenring track, especially as some of the faster sections were now more manageable on the 800cc bikes.

"It's tough, but the second row is not that far back," Rossi said.

"The problem will be overtaking because it's difficult and there are few overtaking spots. One of them was at the exit of the fast sweeper but that bit there takes a lot less effort now so it'll take more work. We'll have to wait and see.

"The important thing will be the feeling you have with the bike, whether you are sorted, and how the tyres do, especially in the second half of the race."