Here’s a quick update from MotoGP.
Oft-injured Pramac Ducati rider Ben Spies says he plans to return to MotoGP next year. There have been rumors circulating that the fragile American rider would not have a GP ride next year, despite having a contract in place. Currently, he’s sitting on the sidelines with a Class 5 separated left shoulder.
Spies has only managed to get in two races this season, which has caused all sort of tongue-wagging. But, he told MotoGP.com he’s set to return next year, just as soon as he’s done mending. Over and over through the interview, he stressed the importance of being 100 per cent healthy before he returned.
In other news, injuries have taken Karel Abraham out of the mix for the rest of this year. Like Spies, Abraham injured his left shoulder at Indianapolis; he tweaked a few ligaments in the shoulder, and will need surgery. Now, his Cardion AB Motoracing CRT team is looking for a replacement rider for the season’s last five races.
Regarding the caption on the picture: That was at Indy, not Laguna.
The headline should read, “Spies and his mother say they’ll return next year.”
I was tempted to point out that while Spies is riding about three races a year and complaining about not being 100 per cent, Lorenzo and Rossi et al are out there winning races while spliced together with more steel and titanium than Robocop.
Breaks are kindergarten compared to snapping ligaments and having cadaver tissue used to reconstruct various connective tissues in the shoulder. Having lived through a serious A/C separation some 25 years ago, I can assure you that the agony of moving and weakness linger for 3~6 months. Expecting Ben to ‘man up and deal with it’ would be completely unrealistic.
As I heard someone else say, “Nowadays, riders don’t so much heal as are repaired.”
Unfortunately for shoulder injuries, they tend to require just as much healing as repairing. There’s a lot of soft/connective tissue at work there.:-\