Spanish MotoGP rider Pol Espargaro (31) was taken to hospital on Friday after a big crash in practice for the season-opening race in Portugal.
His KTM-backed GasGas Factory Racing Tech3 team said Espargaro was conscious but had suffered back and chest trauma and been transferred to hospital in Faro for further examination.
He was thrown off his bike, bouncing over the gravel into the barrier in the second session at the Portimao circuit in southern Portugal.
The session was stopped and the rider received medical attention.
