Marc Marquez was pleased to have secured fifth on the grid at the Valencia Grand Prix after damaging his troublesome shoulder injury during qualifying.
Marquez is due to have surgery on his left shoulder once the 2018 season comes to a close on Sunday, but he suffered further damage on Saturday.
After clocking the quickest time in FP4, Marquez's first flying lap of Q2 saw him come off his Repsol Honda and slide into the gravel.
READ: Vinales grabs Valencia pole as Marquez crashes
He emerged clutching his left shoulder and needed medical checks before he was able to return to the action, where he rode through the pain to get on the second row, while Maverick Vinales will start on pole.
"I was unlucky because I was not pushing, just maybe, the tyre was not at the correct temperature and I lost the front," the world champion said.
"I arrived in the gravel and I already felt something strange on the shoulder. I met with the doctor and we made the check and everything was fine, so I felt ready to ride again."
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"Of course, I didn't push like normal, because it was painful and I did not have enough confidence to push, but even like this we finished just one tenth behind the pole position, in fifth place. I'm happy because in the end we saved the qualifying [session]."
He added: "Of course [it] was impossible [to ignore] because the pain was there. I just did two laps and then [after] the last lap I already stopped in the [pit] box because [that] was enough. I said, 'okay, I don't want the pole position, I just want time to be there in the two front rows'."
"I think [fifth] was even better than what I expected, because the pain was there, but the most important thing is that I was ready to ride the bike, like we see, because the lap times were fast. Now, it's important to work in a good way, to be not 100 per cent [fit] tomorrow, but to be there."
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