"For sure, when I was 25 ten years ago it was different," Rossi admits in the latest After the Flag. "But over the last years I haven’t felt that much different. I think, if you are okay with the body and train hard and especially if you have the right motivation, you can stay at the top in our sport for some years. It is also true that you have some advantages; more experience and knowing the way to stay quiet in a race. You always know that everything can change over the course of a race.

"At the end of last year I was a bit frustrated as I wasn’t able to improve my pace enough in order to fight for the podium in every race. So I decided to change something. It was a big bet, but I’m happy because I am enjoying this year more; I have been able to be stronger and more competitive and especially faster on race day. I have a lot of work to do because the level is very high: especially Marquez, but Lorenzo and Pedrosa are also very fast.

"I enjoy this work and this life a lot. I want to be part of the game. You must not think too much about the past. I am very lucky, having had a great career with a lot of achievement, but if you want to be part of the game you have to think about the future. I wanted to continue and signed another two years of contract, so I want to try and do this part of my career at more than 100%."