Danilo Petrucci injury “a big blow” to already depleted BMW team
BMW says Danilo Petrucci’s Czech WorldSBK injury is a “big blow” ahead of a test at Misano.
A time frame for Danilo Petrucci’s WorldSBK return is unknown after his huge crash in Race 1 at Most.
The Italian returned to Italy on Sunday for scans, after it was confirmed he had suffered a fractured coccyx and multiple other injuries.
Petrucci crashed out of Saturday’s Race 1 when a violent highside sent the BMW rider flying through the gravel at turn 13.
The race was red-flagged as Petrucci was immediately attended to, before the former MotoGP race winner was then taken to hospital.
That left Michael Van Der Mark, who was already replacing the injured Miguel Oliveira, on solo duty for the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team.
One of the strongest rider pairings on the grid heading into the season, BMW is now without both riders as they continue their recoveries. It’s also expected that Van Der Mark will continue riding for the team at the upcoming Aragon round later this month.
Shaun Muir, Team Principal of ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team, said this following the Czech round: “First of all, I really feel for Danilo right now. To sustain injuries in back to back rounds is tough both physically and mentally, and everyone in the team is wishing him a full and speedy recovery.
“The most important thing now is that he takes the time needed to recover properly. As for the weekend, it’s been a difficult one for the whole team.
“We’re very grateful to have a rider of Michael’s experience available to step in for Miguel.
“Adapting back to the Pirelli package was always going to be a challenge, but he’s done a solid job to come away with two points finishes across the weekend.
“At the same time, it still feels like a weekend of what could have been, because Danilo had shown strong pace through Free Practice and Superpole before the incident at the start of Race 1.
“That was a big blow for everyone on his side of the garage. We now head straight to Misano to continue preparations for round seven next month.
“These injuries bring new challenges for the team, but we remain focused on the job ahead and hopefully we’ll have both Danilo and Miguel back fully fit and ready to fight again soon.”
