"No fixed timeline" for Miguel Oliveira WorldSBK return

Miguel Oliveira has “no fixed timeline” to return to WorldSBK after his crash at the Hungarian Round, according to BMW boss Shaun Muir.

Oliveira was taken out of the WorldSBK weekend in Hungary two weeks ago (1–3 May) when he was involved in a crash with Andrea Locatelli and Sam Lowes in the Superpole Race, and sustained a concussion and a shoulder injury.

The Portuguese rider was subsequently ruled out of both this weekend’s (15–17 May) Czech Round and the Aragon Round on 29–31 May.

There is currently no timeline for Oliveira’s return, although the UK Round at Donington on 10–12 July seems like the earliest possibility.

“We could clearly see that Miguel [Oliveira] was injured after the crash,” ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK team principal Shaun Muir told WorldSBK.com during FP1 in Most.

“We have no fixed timeline. We’re going to let the experts take care of that. 

“Normally, it's a six-week recovery. We’ll monitor that. 

“It looks like post-Misano to pre-Donington, we hope he recovers well, and we’ll take our time. At the moment, we’ll just let nature run its course."

Oliveira is being replaced this weekend by Michael van der Mark. For Muir, it’s essential for Danilo Petrucci’s chances on the BMW that the team keeps two bikes on the grid.

“Michael [van der Mark] moved into the testing and endurance team, so it's kind of an extension of the team here,” said Muir.

“He’s certainly the most capable rider we have available, who we can put on the bike, and it’s an actual choice for us. 

“We’ll look for him to be in the top-10. I think that would be a real statement for him. 

“We need to keep two bikes on the grid at all times to support Danilo's [Petrucci] efforts.

“Michael will do a fine job; he knows the bike really well and is riding the same bike on the test team. 

“He’ll be on the bike at the Misano test next week, and he’ll follow that into Aragon. 

“We’ll take a review of the situation after that, and hopefully it’ll coincide with Miguel coming back in the next five to six weeks.”