It's only when I crossed the finishing line at Mugello that I realised just how much my sprained wrist and swollen hand actually hurt. I put in so much effort to win the Italian Grand Prix and so much adrenalin was flowing I completely forgot about any pain until I passed the chequered flag. Then it was a different story.
Although at the end I only finished fifth I felt it was our best race of the season and we learnt a lot which looks good for my two 'home' races coming up in Barcelona and then of course the British Grand Prix at
Donington Park two weeks later.
I'd damaged the hand and broke the fifth metatarsal bone (left toe in layman's language) in my left foot after a big slap into the tarmac in qualifying on Saturday afternoon. It was the same injury to my foot as football stars David Beckham and Wayne Rooney suffered but I was confident I would be fit to race the next day because it was the same bone I'd broken in a practice at Assen in Holland last year. The crash came because the suspension setting was too soft and basically the spring was fully compressed and had no where else to go, just let go and threw me off.
It was my hand and fingers that took a really big hit and my plastic knuckle protector was worn right down after its contact with the tarmac. Without such protection it would have been a lot worse. I woke up in the morning of the race and my hand and wrist were very swollen, stiff and painful. I was worried because I had no power in the wrist but the Clinica Mobile strapped it up so that I could hold the handlebars okay.
After our problems in qualifying the team found a great suspension setting and I was confident starting from the second row of the grid. For the first half of the race I stayed out of trouble at the back of the pack and was protecting my wrist by braking slightly earlier for the corners. With seven laps to go, I decided to for it and, with two laps left, I took the lead.
