Injured Rins set to miss first European races

Rins high-sided off his GSX-RR at Turn 19 on his first timed lap in third practice on Saturday, and was ruled out of the remainder of the weekend.

An official statement from Suzuki said that Rins suffered a "radius and ulnar dislocated fracture of the left wrist".

MotoGP's medical director Dr Xavier Mir confirmed that Rins - set to fly back to Barcelona on Sunday - would require surgery and estimated a minimum recovery period of six weeks for the 21-year-old.

As such, in addition to the Austin race, Rins will almost certainly miss grands prix at Jerez on May 7 and Le Mans on May 21, with his participation in the Mugello race in early June also in doubt.

Having stepped up to MotoGP after finishing third in Moto2 in 2016, Rins has been hounded by injuries since linking up with Suzuki.

A fall during his first test at Valencia last November resulted in two compressed vertebrae, while a motocross crash in the lead-up to the second race of the campaign in Argentina left Rins with a partial fracture in his ankle.