Rossi considers Vinales a 2017 MotoGP title contender
Valentino Rossi says he considers new Yamaha MotoGP teammate Maverick Vinales to be among the favourites to take the 2017 title.
In his first test outing for Yamaha at Valencia, former Suzuki rider Vinales ended up topping the timesheets, earning himself praise from Rossi.
And now the seven-time premier class champion has admitted that Vinales will be one of those vying for the MotoGP title in 2017 - along with himself and perennial contenders Marc Marquez and Jorge Lorenzo.
Speaking after his victory in the Monza Rally Show, Rossi said: "I think the favourites for the title next year are Marquez, Lorenzo, me... then Vinales. Let's wait and see."
Asked whether he considered his 2016 campaign to be among his best, he added: "Absolutely, I rate it among the best ones. If finishing second in the championship has to be considered mediocre, we're finished.
"It was positive because I was competitive in all conditions, I was pretty fast.
"I was unlucky and I made a few errors, but the season was without doubt positive."
Rossi also gave his verdict on Yamaha's recent two-day test at Sepang, where he and Vinales conducted their final preparation work for 2017 before official pre-season testing resumes at the Malaysian track at the end of January.
"The situation is much clearer," Rossi said of the Sepang test.
"We worked a lot more on the new bike and it seems to have more potential than the bike we used in 2016."
Interview by Giacomo Rauli
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