Top five moments at MotoGP testing

Maverick Vinales' record as the fastest in every test since his signing with Yamaha last year is still intact and he heads into this weekend's season-opening as one to keep an eye on.

After the first two 2017 tests, at Sepang and Phillip Island, many felt reigning champion Marc Marquez still held the upper hand for race pace. 

But the Repsol Honda rider had a tough time at Losail, falling three times on the final night alone - one of which ruined a race simulation - and he only set the eleventh fastest outright lap time.

Vinales meanwhile completed a race simulation in which, aside from some moments in traffic, his lap times barely dropped. Not convinced? On the 20th lap of his race simulation, Vinales set a time only 0.076s slower than his best laps at the very start of the run.

The switch to a 'big bang' style engine seems to have improved the aggressive character of the RC213V, but it remains a demanding bike to ride: Marquez's five Qatar accidents were in sharp contrast to Vinales, who is yet to fall at all as a Yamaha rider.

But HRC and its riders are sure they are in a better situation than this time last year and the potential of the 2017 Honda is underlined by the fact that an RCV rider was in the top three at Sepang, Phillip Island and Qatar.

Indeed, Honda filled four out of the nine top-three testing places at the official tests courtesy of Marquez and Pedrosa. Yamaha featured three times thanks to Vinales leading each, with one top-three appearance for Suzuki (Iannone, Sepang) and Ducati (Dovizioso, Qatar).

Honda may be in for a tough time at Qatar, a known challenge for the RC213V, but if Honda can repeat their in-season progress of 2016, Marquez stands an excellent chance of a fourth world title.

Ducati had a decent Sepang test, seemed to struggle at Phillip Island, but were back on the boil at Losail. 

The final day was particularly impressive, with new star signing Jorge Lorenzo leading the timesheets for a large part of the evening. Lorenzo finished the night in fourth place, but just 0.189s from Vinales, while team-mate Andrea Dovizioso got even closer - just 0.071s from the Spaniard.

Throw-in an impressive race run on the hard tyre by Pramac's Danilo Petrucci (who also rides a GP17) a thumbs-up for the new, radical, fairing and the fact that Lorenzo, Dovizioso and the Desmosedici are always strong at Losail and Ducati must be considered a threat for victory.

For some riders, especially those who need a precise set-up, testing times can be a good indication of where they finish in the race. 

Others - notably Rossi and Marquez - are known for their ability to hustle an un-cooperative bike up the order, often aided by some ruthless passes. For that reason, few will write off either riders' Qatar chances on the basis of testing results alone. 

But there is no doubt that Rossi has struggled more than in previous winters and, having felt a long-needed breakthrough was made on Saturday night in Qatar, was left disappointed and 'worried' when he lapped slower on Sunday.

At 38, the Italian is known for not taking risks chasing a single lap time in testing, but the fact that Rossi did not complete a race simulation is a barometer of his situation. If Rossi feels good on the bike, he tests it over long runs. If not, he sees little point and continues seeking answers by trying new ideas over short runs. That is what happened in Qatar.

The fact that Vinales has walked into Yamaha and been instantly fast, despite zero previous knowledge of the M1, must also be grating.

Multiple satellite riders have been at the sharp end of the field during winter testing, and not just over a single lap. 

The likes of Cal Crutchlow, Jack Miller, Alvaro Bautista, Danilo Petrucci, Scott Redding and - most impressively - Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rookies Jonas Folger and Johann Zarco have at times been quick in both short and long runs.

After seeing the first satellite victories since 2006 last season, at the hands of Miller (one) and Crutchlow (two), could there be even more in 2017?