Image: Octopi Media.

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing has confirmed that Jorge Prado plans to undergo further evaluation on his shoulder that led to him sitting out Seattle after qualifying quickest overall in 450SX.

Prado’s benchmark of 50.600s from the opening session was the fastest of all during the afternoon, despite teammate and eventual main event winner Eli Tomac setting the pace in Q2.

A late crash in final qualifying would ultimately rule the 25-year-old Prado out of the night program, attempting to start his heat race before opting to withdraw almost immediately on the opening lap.

“Jorge crashed in practice and at first, like anything, you always feel the sting,” team manager Ian Harrison explained. “You’re worried because he has had an injury to that shoulder before, so we had it checked out in the medical center and everything looked okay, other than aches and pains.

“On a track like tonight, you have to have everything working properly. We asked him to give it a try, but I said that if he didn’t feel he was up to it or if it wasn’t going to be safe, then we’re not in a title-fight with him – he’s doing an amazing job so far – so it was his option. He decided [to] have it checked out again, maybe get some therapy on it, and I’m sure he’ll be back next week, but it doesn’t look like there is any major injury.”

Seattle’s round of Monster Energy Supercross marked the second consecutive weekend that Prado topped the premier class qualifying timesheets. This continues the four-time world champion’s rapid progression, with the team excited about his potential on display.

“I think Jorge is a very, very talented rider,” continued Harrison. “He is figuring out a lot of things and is on the same trajectory as what Ken Roczen was on years ago, so I think his potential is really, really high.”

Prado’s withdrawal from round six results in him dropping back to 10th in the 450SX championship standings, with a single main event podium achieved with P3 at Anaheim 1’s season-opener.