Stoner expecting tight race at Motegi

Loris Capirossi has won the Japanese Grand Prix in a relatively comfortable fashion for the past two years, but Stoner believes that despite Ducati's strong season, this year's race will be a lot closer.

"The last couple of years Loris has managed to stretch the field out, and it would be nice if we could do that this weekend," said the championship leader.

"But my feeling is that everything is starting to get a little bit closer now, so it should be a tight race."

Stoner could only manage third place in last Sunday's Portuguese Grand Prix, and while he acknowledged that Honda and Yamaha appear to have closed the gap to the Italian team, he is not too concerned.

"We struggled a bit in Portugal, I think I messed around a little bit too much in the middle of the race worrying about what was going on," he said.

"But Ducati and Bridgestone have got a really good reputation at this circuit, and I just hope that we can continue as we have been in the past weekends."

Stoner could clinch the title this weekend if he is not outscored by more than one point by Yamaha rival Valentino Rossi.