Rossi: Yamaha will be fast everywhere

Rossi has struggled to match the pace of Ducati's Casey Stoner in some races this year, but after winning on home soil in Mugello last weekend, the Italian is expecting to be more of a match for Stoner over the rest of the season.

Ducati's power advantage should give Stoner a good chance this weekend at Barcelona, but Rossi is confident that his machinery will be strong enough.

"Stoner will be strong, especially down the long straight, but we have worked really hard to close the gap to our rivals, and I think we are ready to battle with them at every track now," said Rossi.

However, the 28-year-old is also expecting fierce competition from Dani Pedrosa, who heads to his home race on the back of a strong second place finish at Mugello.

"Dani Pedrosa will also have a lot of support this weekend and I expect him to be a difficult rival once again after such a good race at Mugello," he added.

Yamaha team boss Davide Brivio believes that the team's victory last weekend marked a turning point in their season, and he added that the team was once again full of confidence.

"We have done a brilliant job after some problems that we had and Valentino's victory in Mugello showed that we are in a position to fight," he said.