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

Every time the Suzuki rider made a successful bid for the lead, Dovizioso used Ducati h🦩orsepower to draft 💟back ahead of the Spaniard.

"I expected Rins to be strong, even if yeste🍌rday he crashed twice. He is so good in the race and his speed in the mi♉ddle 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 struggling a lot."

But it wasn't the Suzu💫ki's speed that was Dovizioso's biggest co♕ncern, but the timing of it. 

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

"I 🔴wanted to stop him every time [he took the lead], because it was too early to push. Nobody can push for the entire race with the rear ꩲtyre. So I think he started [to push] too soon.

"So I was able to stop him and continue to save the tyre and that was a perfect strategy to f🎉ight with Marc in the last lap."

Dovizioso held off Marquez's last gasp attack by just 0.023s as just 0.6ಞs 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 y🦋ou can arrive at the end of the race in a really bad situation," Dovizioso said.

"So I think the best strategy is to try to be ready in the ri🐓ght 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. Because to follow him I have to use the rear tyre.

"Thaat is the reason w🐈hy the gap is so small compared to all the riders. MotoGP now is different I think."

Meanwhile, third place Cal Crutchlow was ꦅalso impressed by the GSX-RR's cornering abiဣlity.

"The Suzuki is strong. No doubt. But ♒I think the Honda is stronger," said the Englishman, adding: "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 i🐬f our bike doesn’t go around the corner as fast we ha♔ve to open earlier to push the tyre more to go with them. Both Mir [8th] and Rins [4th] rode well."