Jake Dixon doubted full wrist recovery after WorldSBK test crash

Jake Dixon is finally set to make his WorldSBK debut this weekend (29–31 May) at the Aragon Round, but he has admitted that he is “still far from 100 per cent”.

The British rider was unable to ride in any of the opening five rounds of his rookie WorldSBK season after breaking his wrist in testing at Phillip Island. 

But he rode for the first time since that February test at Misano on 20–21 May and has passed his fitness check ahead of FP1, although he requires another assessment after the opening practice on Friday morning.

“Good to be back,” said Jake Dixon, speaking to WorldSBK.com.

“It’s my round one, so it seems quite strange because the last time I raced was in November in Moto2, so to be here and finally be able to race for Honda is obviously such a special feeling for me and it’s been such a long journey to get back. 

“I’m still far from 100 per cent, but passed all the medical checks to be fit enough to ride, so let’s see how the weekend goes, how we’re feeling after FP1 tomorrow, and just happy to be back.”

Dixon added that he was unsure at points in his time away from the track that he would be able to recover completely the fitness in his wrist.

“It’s been a long journey,” he said. “There’s been a lot of dark days in those days. 

“Honestly, I didn’t know if I was ever going to be able to get back to full fitness with my wrist – it was pretty bad. 

“So, to even be able to ride again, I’m super-happy. 

“It’s just a process to be back here. I think I’ve done more than 85 or 90 hours of physio, so it’s a lot of hours and it’s just step-by-step.”

Although the Misano test had been an opportunity for Dixon to get back on the bike, he was unable to do extended stints on the bike.

“It was difficult because I was limited to the amount of [laps] I could do in a run,” he explained.

“Everything’s just having to take baby steps with it. Obviously, I want to walk before I can run and, for me, normally I want to run before I can walk. 

“So, just trying to take things as they come, be positive because obviously, at the minute, I feel like I’m not riding anywhere near what my full capability is, so it was quite frustrating in Misano because I felt like I could’ve had more if I was fully fit.”

Dixon added that completing some extended runs is is objective for FP1 on Friday morning.

“Just keep it normal,” he said of his FP1 plan. “Just do one stop, try to do a longer run than I’ve done until now, and keep figuring out this bike because, at the end of the day, I haven’t done a lot of dry laps with this bike. 

“I think [Misano was] my second dry test – Phillip Island was my first one, and then obviously there. So, a lot of laps to learn still, figure it all out. I need to adapt more myself, my style, because I’m still riding very much like my old bike.”