Marlboro Ducati's Valentino Rossi has, after a briefing with returning crew chief Jerry Burgess, decided to stick with the GP11.1 bike in MotoGP free practoced today at Laguna Seca but only managed to finish 11th even with the Sachsenring setup.

The Doctor is happy with the new soft-compound Bridgestone tyres and reckons he needs to get a little more rear grip but says he will use the tricky hsrd compound tyres if it continues to be hot in California. Which is will. It's July.

"After yesterday’s technical briefing with Jerry and the team, we decided to continue with the new bike, so I only used the GP11.1. We started with one bike that had the Sachsenring setup, which has a significant change to the weight distribution, while the second bike had a standard setup. I actually prefer the one from Germany," said Rossi.

"We need to keep working to balance the bike and to improve the rear grip, and then we hope to get a little closer to the pace of the others. We have to try to do better than we have at the last couple of races, and especially to start closer to the front.

"I’m pleased that Bridgestone brought some soft tyres, which worked well in the cool temperatures this morning, although I felt better with the hard when the conditions were warmer in the afternoon. If race conditions are like this, that’s what I’ll use.”