"It‰Ûªs a nice feeling to be back in the MXGP paddock and with the team," Waters said. "I knew it was going to be difficult today as I only got back on the bike last week, and I was right.
"I was riding decently in the top-15 in the early part of the qualifying race, but towards the end I basically had no power left in my shoulders so I dropped down few places while trying to ride the bike home ‰ÛÒ and I had small crash, too.
"Twenty-first place is not the type of result I was looking for, but it‰Ûªs surely an improvement from Latvia! The shoulder feels good, though, and that‰Ûªs the most important thing. We will rest now, get ready for tomorrow and see what happens.
HRC General Manager - MXGP, Marcus Pereira de Freitas wasn't expecting Waters to be 100% with such a small amount of bike time but was satisfied with his return all the same.
"Todd did OK considering it‰Ûªs his first day back after the collarbone injury," Pereira de Freitas said. "His first part of the qualifying race was not too bad but he ran out of energy at the end of the moto ‰ÛÒ something completely understandable - and lost two places at the end due to a small crash. The track is quite unique and sketchy, so we need to be smart tomorrow."
