Moto2: Sam Lowes to attempt comeback in Qatar

Having missed both official Moto2 pre-season tests due to a fractured right shoulder, Sam Lowes is hoping to be passed fit for his Marc VDS debut at this weekend's Qatar season opener.

The Englishman, injured during a private test at Jerez, will undergo a medical check at the Losail Circuit on Thursday.

"It has been a complicated winter because I was looking forward to working with my new team and preparing for the season very well, but things went wrong with the injury," Lowes said.

"Luckily the team is fantastic and my team-mate Augusto [Fernandez] has done an immense job trying out all the new parts without my help.

"I have worked very hard on the recovery process and my shoulder is getting better and better. After the injury, my main goal was to get to Qatar and start the weekend. If the doctors consider me fit to compete, it will be a goal fulfilled.

"The next goal, if my shoulder allows me, would be to try to finish the race and ideally score some points. But in these cases, more than ever you have to go slowly, be realistic and see how the shoulder responds.”

Team-mate Fernandez, also new to the Marc VDS (Kalex) team, was 21st fastest (+1.1s) at the end of the recent Qatar test.

"I'm really looking forward to starting the championship," Fernandez said. "We still have a lot of work ahead of us before the race. I think the Moto2 class will be very close.

"While it's true that test results often must be taken with a pinch of salt, there is a long list of riders who have shown they can go very fast, especially on one lap, and maybe fighting for the front positions.

"I am looking forward to seeing how the official tests go as it will allow us to see things in a more realistic light.

"The objective for this weekend is to work on the same line as during the test and try to finish as far ahead as possible in Sunday's race.

"It's true that it will be a bit of a strange Grand Prix because the MotoGP race is not taking place, but that shouldn't alter our dynamics at all.”

The MotoGP class will not be participating at Qatar this weekend due to travel restrictions in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

As a result, Moto2 has been moved to the planned MotoGP start time of 6pm, meaning it will now be a night race.

Marc VDS won last year's Moto2 title with Alex Marquez, who has moved to MotoGP alongside brother Marc at Repsol Honda for 2020.