The month of June should give a clear indication who is on track to win this year's MotoGP championship, according to standings leader Valentino Rossi.
The 29-year-old Yamaha rider picked up his second consecutive victory at the French Grand Prix on Sunday and climbed to the top of the rankings, three points clear of his rookie teammate Jorge Lorenzo and Honda's Dani Pedrosa.
Sunday's race was the first of six to be staged in Europe, four in the month of June alone, which represent the backbone of the MotoGP season.
''The next five weeks are going to shape the season. And four races are in one month, from Italy to the Netherlands. I'm ready,'' Rossi said the day after picking up his 90th career Grand Prix win, which placed him level with Angel Nieto as the second-biggest winner of all time, behind leader Giacomo Agostini.
''My Yamaha is now super competitive and fun to drive, just the way I like it,'' he added.
Yamaha, in fact, put their bikes on the podium in France with Rossi joined by Lorenzo and his teammate of last year, Colin Edwards, who is riding for a non-factory team.
Looking ahead at his chances of picking up his eighth Grand Prix title, the sixth in motorcycling's premier class, Rossi said ''I'm back on top now, for the first time since 2006, but we're three riders within three points of each other so I'd wait before making any predictions. There are 18 races in the season and we've only done five''.
Aside from Lorenzo and Pedrosa, Rossi included reigning world champion Casey Stoner as a title contender, even if he is currently fourth with only 56 points.
''Stoner and Ducati were unlucky (on Sunday), I wouldn't count him out yet. He can easily battle for the podium in all the remaining races''.
Lorenzo's second place in France, despite having two fractured ankles, confirmed that he may be Rossi's biggest rival for the championship.
''For sure the rival I should underestimate the least is on my same team. Jorge is young,aggressive and fast. I have some experience on my side, so I'd say we're pretty equal,'' Rossi said.
Rossi's victory on Sunday was his 64th Grand Prix win in the premier class, just four short of the record holder Giacomo Agostini.
Speaking before Sunday's race, Rossi said that if he wanted to match Agostini's career total of 122 victories, he would have to win every race from France through all of next season.
Something which he said with a grin was ''difficult.... but not impossible''.
