The Spaniard had held a nine-point advantage over Jorge Lorenzo heading into the Sachsenring, with team-mate Marc Marquez a further 14 points adrift.

Lorenzo was ruled out of the weekend on Friday following a massive crash which further damaged the collarbone he broke in Assen, but rather than capitalise on his rival’s absence Pedrosa joined Lorenzo on the sidelines after a massive highside on Saturday morning.

As a result, Marquez now leads Pedrosa by two points, with the Spaniard carrying lingering injury concerns into this weekend’s race at Laguna Seca.

“[Missing the race] was a big blow because we went to Sachsenring in a very good position, referring to the standings, but racing is like this and you just have to look to the future,” Pedrosa wrote in his official Repsol blog.

“The important thing is that I feel well.

“We’ll have to wait and see how things go with my shoulder-blade, but concerning the other things, the really important ones, I feel fine.

“There are a lot of races left, more or less half the calendar, and everything is there to fight for.”

Pedrosa is yet to win a title in more than seven years in the premier class, while Marquez is chasing what would be a historic crown in his rookie season.