Rossi & Co. really have no choice but to go on the defensive at this point IMO. Sure, there may be a round or two where the Bridgestone/M1 works great from Friday morning, but in most cases Stoner & Ducati will have the set-up data to get a head start from the get-go. I'm not taking anything away from Rossi's ability, I think skill-to-skill he's beyond the rest of the field. This is MotoGP however: tires, electronics, chassis AND rider all have to be in sync to run up front. That said, if Rossi can pull out a championship win this year...it'll be as profound an accomplishment as the Honda-to-Yamaha switch.