The Scot Honda team has dropped Yuki Takahashi and will run only Gabor Talmacsi from this weekend's Laguna Seca race.
Former 125cc champion Talmacsi had joined Scot on a second bike from Catalunya, amid rumors that the longer-term plan was for him to replace Takahashi. The team insisted that it was keen to run both riders for the rest of the season if possible, but has now decided that it cannot afford to do so.
Team manager Cirano Mularoni said that some physical problems for Takahashi also contributed to the decision to focus on Talmacsi.
"The team would face a lot of new costs to line up two riders and without the possibility to improve its results with Yuki because he has suffered a slipped disc in his back, most likely caused by recent falls," he said. "So our team has decided to stop racing with Yuki and to wait for his recovery before making any decisions on his future."
Takahashi had been placed at Scot by Honda, which was keen to maintain a Japanese presence in its MotoGP line-up after Shinya Nakano's departure. HRC vice-president Shuhei Nakamoto said the company was disappointed to see Takahashi lose his ride, but understood Scot's situation.
"For Honda as well as the Scot Racing team, this is a sad announcement and one we wanted to avoid if at all possible," Nakamoto said. "But we understand the team's problems with regard to the increased costs of running two riders.
"Takahashi was the only Japanese rider in the MotoGP championship and of course Honda wanted to see him continue. But in the end the team made it clear that this outcome was impossible and we respect their decision."
The 24-year-old 250cc graduate had endured a difficult start to his MotoGP career and did not finish above 12th in the first half of the season.