Rossi wary of Michelin fightback

The Italian will test with Bridgestone tyres for the first time tomorrow, and he is expecting Michelin to work hard for next season, especially now that they have lost him as one of their top riders.

"I'm curious to see the behaviour of the new tyres, even though I already know what to expect after having kept an eye on them on the track," Rossi was quoted as saying by Gazzetta dello Sport.

"Let's beware of Michelin however. It will multiply its efforts in order not to have another bad season, and it will have an extra motivation: trying to beat me."

Rossi is pleased that Yamaha have responded positively to his request for the boss of Yamaha's MotoGP project, Masao Furosawa, to have a greater role in the project.

"I've spoken with Furosawa, he is as determined as I am," said Rossi. "He will come to every race and he will attend Jerez testing on Tuesday.

"I remain convinced that Yamaha have the means to get back strong. I am happy with Yamaha as I am with the tyre choice."

Rossi's team boss Davide Brivio added that the purpose of this week's test in Spain would be to get used to the change of tyre manufacturer.

"The bike is basically the one that has taken part in the last race of the season, with some updates ahead of 2008," he said.

"Our objective will be to adapt the bike to the new tyres. We'll begin to understand the behaviour and we'll possibly make a list of modification requests for Bridgestone."