I finished my last column by saying that the MotoGP pendulum would swing again at Mugello and Catalunya and that is just what it did - firstly in the direction of Valentino Rossi and then Dani Pedrosa.

With seven races gone it is starting to look like a two-horse race for the title, with Casey Stoner and Jorge Lorenzo both dropping off the championship pace recently for a variety of reasons. The problem for Casey and Jorge is that with a 50-point gap to the top of the championship they are relying on crashes and mechanical failures for Valentino and Dani but both the Yamaha and the Honda look very solid and the riders are in great form. Even if one of them slips up, you can’t see lightening striking twice.

Which way the pendulum ultimately swings will depend, more than anything, on tyres. At Mugello we saw Valentino dominate on the Bridgestones, where incidentally the first non-factory rider across the line was Bridgestone-shod Honda rider Alex de Angelis in fourth place, whilst at Barcelona it was Dani’s turn on the Michelin, with Michelin-shod Honda rider Andrea Dovizioso the first privateer across the line – also in fourth place.

The way the two tyre manufacturers adapt to potentially cooler track temperatures and unpredictable weather conditions at Donington Park and Assen will be crucial. Valentino talks about riding these circuits for the first time with Bridgestone, although the reality is that Dani is riding for the first time on his Michelins – such is the difference between the current generation of French tyres compared to last year. It would be nice to have a crystal ball to see what will happen at Laguna, where Michelin were blown away by Bridgestone last season. That will be a true measure of their improvement.

I get the feeling that the only rider capable of hanging with Dani on Michelin tyres at the moment is Jorge Lorenzo, and it would have been interesting to see what he could have done if he’d stayed on at Mugello and not missed the race entirely in Barcelona. Jorge has come under some criticism for crashing so much lately but he is not the only one. In fact, with Loris Capirossi already ruled out of Donington we’re lucky Dani wasn’t seriously hurt in a highside at Barcelona testing that Colin Edwards reckons was just as high as Lorenzo’s in China. John Hopkins is also struggling with his back injury and I was at hospital with him on Monday when Dani came hobbling in.

It is difficult to explain so many crashes but I can’t help but think that the electronics, which are supposed to make these bikes safer, are principally to blame. The fact is that if somebody gives you a bike to ride and says “Be careful, too much throttle and it will spit you off,” then you take much more care. That’s the way it always used to be with a 500 and as a rider you knew to treat that throttle with respect. Current MotoGP bikes are designed in a way that requires riders to take a lot of that thought process out – open the throttle and let the electronics deal with it. However, the balance between the setting, the traction control, the engine braking and rider control is still a very fine line. At one stage or another you cannot go beyond what the system allows and we’re seeing a lot of what I would call a lowside-highsides, where the bike steps out and then comes back in before gripping and throwing the rider into the air.

Of course, Capirossi’s injury had nothing to do with this – he crashed after a collision with Alex de Angelis in Barcelona. It is always a shame when a rider has to miss a race but personally I am excited by the fact Suzuki have chosen Ben Spies to replace him. Ben was already pencilled in to ride for the factory as a wildcard at Laguna Seca and Indianapolis and I don’t think there’s any hiding the fact they’re keen to get him in full-time in 2009, so it will be interesting to see how he goes. Donington is a good opportunity for both parties to get to know each other and Ben should treat it like a test. The only problem with that is he’s a racer, so I’m sure he’ll be out there competing and trying his best to get a good result.

I was also pleased to hear that Sete Gibernau is making a return of sorts to MotoGP, having agreed to test for Ducati. I always said he’d retired too early and I’d love to see him back because he is a great talent – one of the only men for a long spell to get close to Valentino - and a great guy. Hopefully the break will have done him good and he can rediscover the passion for racing that was so badly missing when he quit two years ago.