Toby Price has made the tough decision to withdraw from the Sealine Cross-Country Rally in Qatar after sustaining a slipped disc in his back.

Following a promising stage one third place finish behind Red Bull KTM teammate Sam Sunderland, the Dakar Rally winner made the decision to pull out of the event to minimise further damage.

“It’s never the best to pull out of races half way around the world when the team puts in so much effort, time and money,” Price said. “But pulling out of today’s race and event is hopefully going to be a smarter option for long term.”

Price is grateful to have the full support of the KTM factory off-road crew behind him in his decision to exit the event in its early stages.

“The team I have are the best and told me it’s not worth it and shows they put safety first,” he added. “Blows me away that everything they do, they are still on my side and say call it quits in bad times.

“I can’t thank them enough for this cause otherwise I would of been pulling a helmet on and possibly making this worse. I want to be here for a long time, not a short time – a slipped disc is not fun.”

An expected recovery time period is yet to be announced by Price or his team at this stage.