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Chris Vermeulen believes he could challenge for the MotoGP title this year, but readily admits that one man in particular poses a formidable obstacle to his ambitions.

Having finished 11th overall in his first full season in top-class racing, Vermeulen has set himself the target of building on his podium finish in his native Australia towards the end of last year and breaking into the top five on a regular basis.

The rookie rider told Sportal that he and a number of others will be looking to knock reigning champion Nicky Hayden off his perch, but he nonetheless declared Valentino Rossi to be the favourite for this year's competition.

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Vermeulen explained: "He's been there, he's done it, he's five times world champion in the class.

"He's still the guy with biggest target on his back. Nicky did a great job last year beating him, but I still think Valentino's gonna be the guy to beat."

However, the Suzuki rider refused to rule himself out of the reckoning and is extremely happy with his progress, claiming that the advances made by both himself and his team are evident for all to see.

Indeed, Rossi is one of those who has been impressed by Vermeulen's form and noted during testing on Spain back in December that the young Australian surprisingly seems to have found an extra bit of speed since MotoGP switched to the 800cc format.

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