Stoner still not thinking about the title

The Ducati Marlboro rider overcame changeable weather conditions to take his fifth victory from the eight events held so far this year. And although he now has a 26-points margin over Rossi, he is adamant that his focus is still very much race-by-race.

"I am enjoying the races as they come and if you start looking at a championship, maybe you start to get too involved with it," said Stoner, who is in only his second season of MotoGP.

"I am enjoying all these races, these last ones, whether I win or whether I don't get on the podium. It is just nice to be out there, and I know coming out of a corner I am not going to lose the front.

"I have got that confidence in myself and the bike, and I am able to really get myself involved in the race and really enjoy it."

Stoner is bullish, however, about the speed of his GP7 bike. And he has reiterated his belief that the machine now has no weaknesses, and the challenge now is in building on its strengths.

"It is good because it proves to a lot of people that Ducati doesn't just have power," explained the Australian. "In Catalunya, a few people saw that everyone else is starting to catch up but we still managed to be as fast if not faster than them most of the time.

"We have been improving the bike all the time, with its weak points, and now it doesn't have a weak point. We just need to improve it as a package. Obviously it is the best bike out there at the moment and I cannot complain. Everything has been working perfectly all weekend and pretty much all season."