In 2002 the Yamaha was at more or less the same level as the Honda, better in some ways, worse in others. But in the winter of last year between 2002 and 2003, Honda made a big step forward and it seemed as if Yamaha couldn't quite match that improvement.
In my opinion we are at the limit now, and 17 races is really too much. With all the testing that we do now, it means we're always on the bike and it's quite difficult.
It's a big, big advantage because understanding what changes we might make takes time and it takes time to work out settings and to understand everything about the new machine.
We have the 2004 M1 here for reference, which is useful. It worked well here last year; we won the race and always did fast lap times so it will be interesting to compare it to the new bike and it will help us to understand which parts have improved.
The work that we do during the winter is very important; we have a new bike and it's important to develop it during this time, and we start with this test.
The most important thing is to have a good relationship with the bike... you have to understand what she wants. I think of a motorcycle as a woman, and I know that sounds silly, but it's true.
