Stoner crashed out of the lead at Qatar's season opener on Sunday.

Australian Casey Stoner has vowed to fight back following his devastating crash on the fifth lap while leading the MotoGP World Championship season opener at the Losail Circuit in Qatar on Sunday.

The 2007 world champion dismounted his Ducati Marlboro Desmosedici GP10 on Turn Four while leading nine-time world champion Valentino Rossi, the Italian’s victory handing him a 25-point advantage over Stoner in the title chase.

Despite his frustrations after a simple front-end crash, Stoner says he’s not giving up just yet, determined to fight back in an effort to cut down Rossi’s early lead.

“Once I got to the front I started to get into my rhythm but I lost the front end a couple of times in long corners so I made the decision to try to ride a bit smoother and not put so much pressure on the front tyre with the full tank,” he said.

“Unfortunately that is what led to the crash because looking at the telemetry I didn’t have enough load on the front, so I guess in hindsight I should have stuck to the way I’d been riding all weekend.

“Having said that it’s not a complete disaster because we’ve found this weekend that the bike has improved in areas where we have struggled in the past – for example the rear grip was unbelievable – and we have a long, long way to go – I think we can both be confident and optimistic about the rest of the season with this bike.”

Stoner was the pace-setter throughout the Qatar weekend, quickest in practice and taking pole position, continuing his form in the middle east under lights that saw him score the previous three victories at Losail.

The series will resume on 23-25 April on Japan when the championship visits the Motegi Circuit.