Valentino Rossi insisted his he was happy with his fourth place in Sunday's Indianapolis MotoGP, which came after he had fallen three times in practice.
The Fiat Yamaha rider overtook the knee-slider-less Nicky Hayden on lap four and settled into fifth place, a few tenths off the Lorenzo-Dovizioso battle.
Once Lorenzo was past Dovizioso, the world champion too began to close down his compatriot and with eight laps remaining he passed him for fourth place.
By then however his lack of fitness following his leg injury had caught up with him in the searing heat and he was unable to push any more, coming home some six seconds behind his team-mate.
"During the race, I had some good laps, and I wasn't far from the other Yamahas. Unfortunately, I have problem with my physical condition, and it's hotter," he said.
"And at the end, I needed to give up because I didn't have any more strength, any more power. But I'm happy because we came back to our normal setting to the bike like I want it. And I ride well considering I crashed three times. Fourth place is OK.
"I suffer a lot in the race. From yesterday, my physical condition improved because I have less pain. But I have less strength throughout the race. I think it's normal. I'm not at the maximum, for sure.
"Right now, I'm not fit to try to win. There was a part of the race where I was competitive. But I didn't have enough power for the whole race. This is the main target to come back to getting a victory," he concluded.
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