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MotoGP: Alex De Angelis Injury Update

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Alex De Angelis has suffered serious injuries as a result of a very heavy fall during the FP4 session of practice for the MotoGP class, losing control of his bike on the exit of Turn 9 and ending up against the crash barrier on the opposite side of the track before turn 10.

The crash caused Race Direction to red flag the session, while De Angelis received treatment on track. Fortunately, De Angelis was soon reported as being conscious and able to move his limbs.

The man from San Marino was taken first to the medical center, then airlifted to the nearby Dokkyo Hospital in Mibu. After examination, De Angelis was found to have fractured several vertebrae, with initial reports stating five vertebrae, and later reports bringing the total to seven vertebrae, including three where the vertebra body was fractured, the round part of the bone which encases the spinal cord.

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Lifestyle

Welcome the Newest Member of the Collarbone Club

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If you talk to long-time motorcyclists, they either have a story or two about the collarbone(s) they have broken, or they remark about how lucky they are not to have broken one…yet. This is because the clavicle is a common bone to break during our two-wheeled endeavors – a right of passage, perhaps.

If you follow me on social media, you probably already know that I have gained entry into this esteemed club last week, breaking my collarbone all of ten feet into Switzerland, while riding on a BMW R1200RS (review to come).

For those that don’t follow me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram (see what I did there?), this would explain why the chronicling of my European tour suddenly stopped without reason. Well…that and Italy barely qualifies as a first-world country when it comes to telecommunications.

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MotoGP

Friday Summary at Brno: Heat, Bumps, Tires, & A Star-Crossed Pedrosa

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The weather put the cat among the pigeons at Brno on Friday. Hot weather, track temperatures of over 50°C and a bumpy track pushed the riders and their tires to the limit, and the afternoon session of MotoGP turned into a proper crashfest.

Valentino Rossi was the first to go down, followed a second later by Dani Pedrosa, but what caused those two to crash had nothing to do with the weather conditions.

A leaking fork seal dribbled oil onto Dani Pedrosa’s brakes, causing a mist of oily smoke to trail behind Pedrosa, onto the rear wheel of his Honda RC213V and the front wheel of Valentino Rossi’s Yamaha M1. Rossi lost the front and crashed at Turn 13, Pedrosa was highsided off his bike at Turn 14.

Rossi walked away unhurt, Pedrosa slammed his left foot into the ground, aggravating an old injury suffered in Australia in 2003.

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Racing

Guy Martin Breaks Back in Ulster GP Crash

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Guy Martin’s weekend at the Ulster Grand Prix is over, after a nasty crash during the Dundrod 150 Superbike race left the Tyco BMW rider with a broken vertebra, sternum, and ribs.

Watching the footage of the crash (after the jump), Martin was surprisingly lucky with his crash, despite his laundry list of painful injuries. Martin went down in one of the few areas on the Dundrod Circuit where there is a clearing, and narrowly missed a tree that was in his crash trajectory, in the process.

That being said though, Martin will have to remain in the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast for the next few days, as he recovers from surgery and mends his wounds. He is said to be in good spirits.

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Opinion/Editorial

Some Thoughts on the Suzuka 8-Hour

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Once upon a time, the Suzuka 8 Hour race was a big deal. A very big deal. It was the race the Japanese factories sent their very best riders to compete in, the event often being written into the contracts of the top Grand Prix and World Superbike riders as part of their factory deals.

The list of big names to win the race is impressive. Wayne Rainey, Eddie Lawson, Mick Doohan, Wayne Gardner, Daryl Beattie, Aaron Slight, Doug Polen, Scott Russell, Noriyuki Haga, Colin Edwards, Daijiro Kato, Alex Barros, Shinichi Itoh, Tohru Ukawa, Taddy Okada. And of course Valentino Rossi.

There, they faced the very best of the Japanese Superbike riders, as well as the regulars from the World Endurance Championship, of which it forms a part.

It may have been an honor to have been asked to do the race, but the GP riders were far from keen. Held in July, the race fell right in the middle of the Grand Prix season.

Racing in the event meant multiple flights to Japan for testing and practice, then the grueling race itself in the oppressive heat and humidity of a Japanese summer. It meant doing the equivalent of four Grand Prix in the space of eight hours, then rushing home to get ready for the next race.

The best case scenario meant they started the next Grand Prix event tired and aching from Suzuka. The worst case was a crash and an injury that either kept them off the bike or left them riding hurt.

The only benefit was that it kept the factories happy, and marginally increased a rider’s chances of extending his contract with the manufacturer for a following season.

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Racing

Video of Casey Stoner’s Crash at the Suzuka 8-Hour

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You may have already heard that Casey Stoner crashed out of the Suzuka 8-Hour this weekend, while leading the race no less. The result of which was a broken scaphoid and fractured left tibia/ankle for the 29-year-old Australian, who had finally found himself back in motorcycle racing.

Ultimately, the throttle on the MuSASHi RT HARC-PRO Honda CBR1000RR was to blame, with it getting stuck open at 26º of full throttle.

For fans that have been waiting the return of Casey Stoner, a rider we tip as likely the most talented ever to race on two wheels, this is a disappointing end to what could have been a fairytale weekend.

Time will tell if Stoner mounts another racing motorcycle, though we imagine this weekend’s events don’t help the realization of that pipe dream.

Click after the jump, for the carnage…and note why many riders consider Suzuka too dangerous a venue for motorcycles.

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Racing

Kenny Noyes in Medically Induced Coma after Crash

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Unfortunate news today, as we get word that Kenny Noyes has been airlifted from the Motorland Aragon circuit, after sustaining a serious accident during the warm-up session for the CEV Superbike round at the Spanish circuit.

The Spanish-born American racer was taken to a hospital in Zaragoza, and currently is being kept in a medically induced coma. According to initial reports, Noyes appears to have collided with another rider on the track at Turn 8, and then hit the tire wall.

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MotoGP

Marquez Breaks Finger in Crash – Will Race at Jerez?

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Marc Marquez has broken a finger in his left hand in a dirt track training crash.

The reigning world champion fell heavily, suffering a displaced fracture of the proximal phalange in the little finger of his left hand. This means that the bone between the hand and the first knuckle was broken, and the two parts of the bone moved.

Marquez was taken immediately to the Dexeus Institute in Barcelona, where Dr. Xavier Mir, who performs surgery on many of the top MotoGP and WSBK riders, operated on the Spaniard.

The bone was put together again and then fixed with a titanium plate. Marquez is due to start functional recovery within 24 hours.

The press release issued by Honda is strangely hesitant about Marquez’s prospects of racing at Jerez.

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Racing

The Biggest Crashes from the 2014 Malaysian Cub Prix

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One of the highlights for me this year was getting to travel to Malaysia, for the Malaysian Grand Prix. A tremendously diverse country, Malaysians come together for many things, but one of the biggest is motorcycle racing.

The Malaysian economy hasn’t quite caught up with the country’s appetite though, so large-displacement machines are more of a rarity than a norm on the city streets.

Instead, you will see Malaysians riding these small-displacement bike that no matter the manufacturer, looks suspciously like the iconic Honda Cub.

Naturally the racing desire conquers all, and these “cubs” are raced, en masse, on Malaysian “race courses” — some of which are more professionally put together than others.

The speeds might not be MotoGP-level, but the riders are going 10/10ths, and the crashes are just as intense. For your cringing pleasure, here are the biggest crashes from the 2014 Malaysian Cub Prix, after the jump.

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MotoGP

AGV Helmets Analyzes Valentino Rossi’s Crash at Aragon

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The crashes of Valentino Rossi and Andrea Iannone at Aragon two-and-a-half weeks ago raised a lot of questions about safety, leading to the Safety Commission deciding to start removal of all the artificial turf from around the circuits used by MotoGP.

Rossi’s crash, in particular, was severe, the Italian being clipped and knocked briefly unconscious by the back wheel of his Yamaha as he tumbled.

That Rossi did not suffer much worse injuries is in no small part down to his helmet. The AGV Pista GP helmet which Rossi helped develop provided an incredible level of protection for the Italian.

After the incident, AGV took the helmet away to analyze the damage done to the helmet in the crash. They issued a press release, complete with close up photos of the damage sustained, explaining the damage done and how the helmet had protected Rossi.

The press release makes for interesting reading, and the close up photos of the damage are especially revealing of just how well the helmet stood up in the crash. Make sure you click on the photos to view higher resolution versions. The AGV press release appears after the jump.

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