I would have probably stolen cars - it would have given me the same adrenaline rush as racing.

I think the secret is to understand that you still want to be part of the game. To do so, you have to forget all the victories you've managed to get in the previous years and have a great humility. You also need to realise that, if you want to go on, you have to work hard. If you dwell too much on your past successes and say "well, I have won nine world titles and more than 100 races", you'd rather stay home.

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.

You need a combination of many things to get good results. Experience is one of these, and it can be very useful at the right moment. I don't know if it helps to go faster, but for sure it's an important element that has helped me a lot. Being experienced helps you to make fewer mistakes when you are on track. This is the positive side for being around for so many years!

I never race for records. The motivation to try to beat the record is not enough to continue. You have to enjoy it.

In 2009, I didn't like that Yamaha signed such a young and competitive teammate [Jorge Lorenzo]. But now everything is different. We are more mature. Everyone knows his role and position. Things are clear.

I have won on Honda and Yamaha so maybe it is interesting to win with a third team, Ducati, who are Italian.