One of the keys to Andrea Dovizioso's (provisional) victory in the Qatar season-opener was containing a charging Alex Rins in th൲e middle stages of the race.

Every time the Suzuki rider made a successful bꦛid for the lead, Dovizioso used Ducati horsepower to draft back ahead ꧒of the Spaniard.

"I expected Rins to be strong, even iℱf yester🃏day he crashed twice. He is so good in the race and his speed in the middle of the corners is embarrassing!" Dovizioso said.

"I mean, his bike I think is completely the opposite of my bike. I can accelerate so strong, I can be very fast in the straight but in the middle of the corner I'm strugglꦚing a lot."

But it wasn't the Suzuki's speed that was Dovizioso's biggestꦦ concern, but the timing of it. 

While in the lead, Rins wanted to raise the pace to a level tha♎ꦕt Dovi felt was unsustainable for the race distance.

"I wanted to stop h👍im every time [he took the lead], because it was to🌜o early to push. Nobody can push for the entire race with the rear tyre. So I think he started [to push] too soon.

"So I was able to stop𒁏 him and continue to save the tyre and that was a perfect strategy to fight with Marc inꦿ the last lap."

Dov♔izioso held off Marquez's last gasp attack by just 0.023s as just 0.6s covered the top five, a reflection of the way in which tyres must be managed over the race distance.

"I think MotoGP now is really different to past. Valentino finished 0.6s behind and was fifth. I think nobody tries to make the fastest race. Especially because you can arrive at the end of the ra🍎ce in𒊎 a really bad situation," Dovizioso said.

"So I think the best strategy is to try to be ready in the right moment. I think this is what I did. I saved a lot the tyre during the race. That's why I stopped Rins every time. Becaus꧋e to follow him I have to use the rear tyre.

"Thaat is the 🦩reason why the gap is so small compared to all the riders. MotoGP now is different I think."

Meanwhile, third place Cal Crutchlow was also impressed by the GSX-RR's c🍷ornering ability.

"The Suzuki is strong. No doubt. But I think the Honda is stronger," said the Englishman, a༒dding: "The Suzuki manages the tyre very well, so if they are in front of us you have to push a lot more to be with them.

"The corner speed they carry is phenomenal. And it means if our bike doesn’t g𒉰o around the corner as fast we have to open earlier to push the tyre more to go with them. Both Mir [8th] and Rins [4th] rode well."