Pedrosa injured, Lorenzo closes on title

Pedrosa sustained a three fragment fracture to his left collarbone when he crashed his Honda just six minutes into the first session of the weekend in Japan.

He lost control of the bike under braking on the straight before Turn 9, and landed awkwardly on his left side with his left foot trapped under the bike.

Pedrosa initially stood and walked away from the scene, but was then taken to the medical centre on a stretcher, where x-rays revealed three fractures.

There has been no word yet on how long Pedrosa will be sidelined - or even if he will attempt to ride with plates in the injury, as Moto2 rider Thomas Luthi did earlier this year.

But with the final five races coming in the next six weeks and Lorenzo leading his fellow Spaniard by 56 points already - and next nearest challenger Casey Stoner by 129, it is unlikely that he can be caught.