– Alex Marquez was injured at the Catalonia Grand Prix at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The Spaniard was initially taken to the Medical Center after first aid on the track and then to a hospital.
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Late in the afternoon, his Gresini team shared how the current MotoGP runner-up is doing. He has sustained a minor fracture of the 7th cervical vertebra (C7).
A further examination will be conducted next week. In addition, Alex Marquez has broken his right collarbone. This fracture will be stabilized with a plate.
The 30-year-old will be operated on today Sunday by the medical team of the Hospital General de Catalunya. The Gresini team will provide further information about his health status in due course.
The serious accident occurred in the 12th lap. Alex Marquez was riding directly behind Pedro Acosta in second place when the KTM suddenly stopped accelerating on the straight between turn 9 and turn 10.
Alex Marquez could not avoid it, collided with the rear of the KTM, and then veered right onto the grass strip beside the track. There he crashed at still high speed.
His Ducati flipped multiple times, broke into pieces, and was thrown back onto the track. Some riders were hit by parts. Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46) collided with a detached tire and crashed.
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When the rescue teams arrived at Alex Marquez, race control reported that he was conscious. The concern and tension were especially noticeable in the Gresini box.
Teammate Fermin Aldeguer finished third. Since Joan Mir (Honda) received a time penalty due to the tire pressure rule, Aldeguer moved up to second place.
“Achieving such a result while other riders are in the hospital is not a nice feeling,” said the 21-year-old, “but we are professional racers.” He described in the press conference how he experienced the race stoppages in the Gresini box.
“It was difficult to deal with mentally when I was in the box and saw the replays of the two crashes. The first was quite hard to watch.”
“The tension in my box was also noticeable because my teammate was on the ground. It is not easy when you don’t know what happened.” The Gresini team added the hashtag #GetWellSoonAlex in posts on social media.
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