Gold Coast rider Anthony West is in doubt for Sunday's Australian 250cc Motorcycle Grand Prix after crashing out of early qualifying at Phillip Island.

West was airlifted to the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne after catapulting off his Aprilia at Turn One midway through the session.

The 23-year-old bounced into a gravel trap and was in obvious pain before an ambulance transported him to the trackside medical centre.

He is in a satisfactory condition, suffering from a sore neck and a wrist injury.

West was already riding with a broken arm following a race fall in the Malaysian Grand Prix last Sunday.

He removed the plaster cast from his left arm only on Thursday and was preparing to race with the aid of painkilling injections.

Championship leader Danny Pedrosa was relegated to seventh place in qualifying after losing time with mechanical problems.

Pedrosa said the team had to set up the second Honda bike for the track before he could record any time.

"These co-ordination problems knocked my concentration a bit and I wasn't able to ride as hard as I should have," Pedrosa said.

"Tomorrow we'll have to concentrate much harder in the two sessions we have available."

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