Aprilia rider Aleix Espargaró suffered a serious accident in the final minutes of MotoGP qualifying in Assen. The Spaniard suffered severe pain in his lower back and neck, but there are no fractures and his presence on the track is not in doubt.
The Assen accident
Not only was it a spectacular end to the tests due to the bad fall in which Aleix flew off his bike, but he was also the protagonist of free practice 1. In this session everything was going normally, until the Aprilia rider he decided to leave the garage to return to the track and his bike fell in the middle of the pit lane. Fortunately, an accident without consequences for him and his other MotoGP colleagues. It was therefore a very eventful Friday for the eldest of the Granollers brothers…
But it didn’t end there, because the real scare came at the end of the second session of the Assen weekend. Aleix Espargaró flew off his bike while going through the chicane, but he came out on his own two feet, although visibly in pain. The circuit’s medical team released a statement to confirm the results of the medical tests carried out on the MotoGP veteran.After the fall he underwent a clinical examination at the circuit’s medical centre. He did not suffer serious injuries, but he has discomfort due to the contusion in the area of the sacrum and coccyx (sacrococcygeus) as can be seen from the dynamics of the fall“.
Espargaro’s reassurances
He didn’t appear at the press conference, yet the rider who will end his career at the end of the year (to become Honda’s test driver) was keen to reassure his fans. “In the end I crashed and it’s a shame because up to that point the day was going very well. I felt competitive on the bike and this is not an easy circuit… We have a lot of speed and the aerodynamics put more weight on the front every year. Overall I’m happy, although I have a lot of pain in my lower back and neck. Saturday will be even worse, but not as bad as it could have been“. Before the final crash, Espargaró had achieved fourth place and went directly to Q2. With the pain caused by the accident he will therefore not have to go through Q1.
Photo: Michelin Motorsport
