Davies was drafted in at the last minute to race in Sunday's race

Davies, 20, was a late replacement in the D'Antin Ducati team after Alex Hofmann broke his hand on Saturday.

And despite enduring mechanical problems, Davies finished a creditable 16th place at Laguna Seca.

"It was a difficult race for me, but I'm very happy to have taken part in this," he said. "I want to thank the team for this opportunity."

Davies, from Knighton in Powys, has been racing in the AMA Supersport and Formula Xtreme championships in America this season after losing his place in the 250cc World Championship last year.

606: DEBATE Quick shout for Chaz Davies, not bad after being thrown in the deep end SJ73

But he was at the right place at the right time on Saturday to take advantage of Hofmann's misfortune after a crash in the opening practice session on Saturday ruled him out of the race.

Davies had never even sat on a 800cc MotoGP bike before, but he had little trouble adjusting to the unfamiliar machine as he finished only 1.806second off Casey Stoner's pole position time in qualifying.

He admitted he felt apprehensive before the start of the race, but said he enjoyed himself once the action got underway.

"At the beginning I was really worried because it was my first race in MotoGP," he said.

"I was on a complicated track, the race was 32 long laps, and along with the notorious corkscrew, I was pretty worried.

"I got a fantastic start, but then I made a couple of mistakes and I lost the group.

"Fortunately I was able to rejoin the race with a bike that worked very well, and just a few laps to the end, I did my best time."

Ducati team boss Luis D'Antin was certainly impressed with Davies, saying the young Welshman had far exceeded expectations.

"I am very impressed," said D'Antin. "I was impressed more about his attitude. In one sense he was very nervous but on the other side he is quiet on the bike.