The seven-time former world champion overcame a difficult start, to pick off his rivals one by one, and storm to the lead at the halfway stage. Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa was charged with the task of reeling Rossi in, but the Italian rider maintained his composure to win by over two seconds.

Pramac Ducati veteran Alex Barros produced a ride to match Rossi's, storming up from tenth on the grid to take the remaining podium position.

It was a particularly sweet victory for Rossi in front of a partisan Italian crowd of over 85,000. He has made a concerted move on the world title he lost to Honda's Nicky Hayden last year.

Stoner, who started on pole, finished fourth, with a consistent ride as the Bridgestone tyres struggled. Fellow Australian, Chris Vermeulen of Rizla Suzuki, started alongside Stoner, but it was apparent he didn't have the bike to stick with the leading riders, and he dropped back in the field to eventually finish eighth.

John Hopkins, Vermeulen's team-mate, took fifth with a strong ride, while Gresini Honda's Toni Elias was sixth and Ducati's Loris Capriossi was left to rue a mid-race mistake which saw him finish seventh.

The championship is intriguingly poised with Stoner on 115, Rossi on 106 and Pedrosa still a chance on 82.

Stoner got a brilliant start, powering away from Vermeulen, while Rossi slipped back to eighth with an atrocious start. The power of the Ducati down the long Mugello straight was evident from very early on, with Loris Capirossi getting past Vermeulen quickly, and setting out after his team-mate.

By the end of the third lap, Capirossi had got past Stoner, while Pedrosa and Marco Melandri were right on the pace. Vermeulen's bike had lost its advantage in the dry, and he found himself back in seventh after the first four laps with Rossi and Hopkins also pushing their way past the Queenslander.

Such was the closeness of the top seven, a slip up from Capirossi on lap six saw him drop back to sixth, while Pedrosa got up the inside of Stoner to claim the lead. Rossi had fought his way back into second, and as his Yamaha warmed the task, he got through to grab the lead with 15 laps remaining.

But the young Spaniard didn't let the Italian champion get away, and headed him briefly, before Rossi re-established his lead. He was relatively untroubled late in the race, and opened up a comfortable enough lead to enable a hassle-free run to the chequered flag.

Rossi now heads into the Catalan MotoGP in a week's time full of confidence after a vintage performance which reminded the entire grid of what a magnificent rider he is. Sportal

In Italian: Rossi: "Una delle più belle"

Il pesarese felice per il trionfo del Mugello: "Gara fantastica". Il ringraziamento a Yamaha e Michelin: "Senza una moto e gomme così non ce l'avrei fatta". Pedrosa: "Vale imprendibile". Stoner: "Non a posto sull'asciutto"

"Senza una moto e delle gomme così a posto non si poteva fare questa gara". Valentino Rossi analizza così la vittoria nel GP d'Italia, la sua sesta consecutiva sulla pista toscana. "È stata una gara fantastica, correre qui al Mugello è sempre un'emozione incredibile. Il pubblico mi ha dato una grandissima spinta. Con Stoner nessuna scaramuccia, mi ha sorpassato e ho provato subito a riattaccarlo. Alla prima curva le Bridgestone erano avvantaggiate e la vedevo male, poi ho fatto tutto quello che dovevo fare e le nostre gomme hanno lavorato bene. La partenza? Ho faticato, ho lasciato la frizione un po' troppo presto, la moto si è un po' impennata e la gomma ha faticato a entrare in temperatura. Penso sia stata una delle mie gare più belle".

Moto GP Classifica