Valentino Rossi's joy for clocking the fastest time in Friday's practice sessions for the China Grand Prix was overshadowed by his Yamaha teammate Jorge Lorenzo breaking his foot in a morning crash.
''I'm really sorry for Lorenzo's crash. It was quite a bad one and I hope he'll be able to recover in time for Sunday's race,'' the seven-time world champion said.
''I think he'll try to make it to the track on Saturday for qualifying. It certainly won't be easy for him but he's young and is a very gutsy ride,'' he added.
Rossi said he thought his teammate probably fell because ''it was his first lap with a new tire and perhaps he pushed a little too hard for having a cold tire''.
Lorenzo, who moved up to MotoGP this year after two 250cc titles, fractured his left ankle and suffered other lower body injuries when he lost control of his bike during the morning practice.
Doctors said they will decide on Saturday whether or not to give their green light to Lorenzo going back to the track for the morning practice and afternoon qualifying sessions.
''If the pain has decreased, we could help him to ride (with medication), if not it would be better to wait. But the rider will have the last word,'' a doctor said.
Lorenzo's team manager Daniele Romagnoli said he thought the accident was probably due to over-confidence on the Spaniard's side, as opposed to a technical problem, and expressed his hope that he would be able to ride on Saturday and Sunday.
Lorenzo currently leads in the riders' standings having won in Portugal in the last race, and come in second in Qatar and third in Spain.
He has also taken pole position in all three races.
Thanks to his times on Friday, Rossi is very upbeat about his chances of clinching his first victory of the season, his best so far being a second place in Spain after which he placed third in Portugal.
''This has been my best Friday in a long time. Even with used tires I was fast and kept a good pace. But there is always room to improve,'' Rossi said at the end of the day.
Looking back at the season so far Rossi said: ''We weren't ready in Qatar, while in Spain and Portugal we were fast but unable to keep up the pace throughout the race''.
''Still we're not in such a bad place in the standings and there is a long way to go. However, our rivals are strong and we can't afford to make any mistakes and from now on must collect as many points as possible,'' Rossi said.
