MotoGP 2017: Qatar Test Preview — Rossi Not Comfortable With The New M1

The last three pre-season test was topped by Yamaha's recruit Maverick Vinales. Without the shadow of a doubt, we can explicitly say that he is one of the main title contenders this year. Last season, Vinales race for Suzuki and with no time, he adapted his style to Yamaha and became the fastest man.

Meanwhile, Vinales' teammate and nine-time world champion Valentino Rossi has a huge step to make his M1 competitive from the very first race of the season. The Italian was not comfortable with the new M1, and he seems to be far behind not only Vinales but also reigning world champion and arch-rival Marc Marquez on the Honda.

According to Rossi, Marquez is the man to beat this season. In every test, the Spaniard will be topping the race simulation by posting similar lap times even though he insists there is a lot of work to do. In Qatar test, Marquez will be focused on fine tuning the Honda.

Marquez' teammate and veteran rider Dani Pedrosa has also found some positives from the pre-season tests. Marquez said that for the 2017 crown, there'd be a ferocious battle between him, Vinales, Rossi, and Pedrosa. As we all know, Honda and Pedrosa is overall a great race winning package, but there are some elements missing. If Pedrosa can fix those issues, then we'll have a new world champion this season.

Suzuki's number one rider Andrea Iannone is one of the fastest riders in the current MotoGP grid. The last pre-season test saw Iannone's teammate and MotoGP rookie Alex Rins outclass him. Iannone will try to take back ground from his teammate and will fine tune his Suzuki GSX-RR for the long distance stint.

The Qatar test is also the last chance for Ducati and its works riders, Jorge Lorenzo and Andrea Dovizioso to make some changes. The Italian marque is expected to test new fairing which will provide more downforce. After the Qatar, we'll know whether Ducati has a title winning machine or not.