Stefan Bradl to fill in for injured Crutchlow
Following LCR Honda Castrol rider Cal Crutchlow’s injury at Phillip Island, the LCR Honda Team has confirmed that HRC Test rider Stefan Bradl will replace the Briton at the Sepang Grand Prix.
Stefan Bradl (HRC Test Rider)
“First of all I want to say it’s a great pity for Cal because he was in good form after the podium in Japan and the last few races. I hope he has a speedy recovery. It’s a good opportunity for me, it’s a nice comeback (to the LCR Team) as we had three years together and there are a lot of people I know in the team. I also want to thank HRC and Lucio for reacting so quickly and professionally to this situation. Now let’s see what we can do, I’m looking forward to seeing the guys and working with them again.”
Crutchlow – who headed to Australia in great form after his second place at Motegi – suffered a fracture to his right ankle and distal tibia after a heavy fall at the famous coastal circuit on Friday. He underwent an operation in Melbourne and has an external frame fitted to his ankle, Cal is expected to have further surgery late next week.
Lucio Cecchinello (LCR Team Principal)
“Cal arrived at Alfred Hospital by helicopter very quickly after the crash and his initial treatment in the medical centre at the race track. We are very grateful for this because, despite his serious injury, it was not compulsory, but everyone was very keen for him to be taken to hospital by helicopter. Once he arrived, he had a full body scan which confirmed that the only part of his body injured in the crash was his right ankle. The fracture he sustained to it involved both the ankle malleolus and distal tibia. Dr. Lazarus and the surgery team led by Dr. Edwards – who successfully operated on the right ankle of Dani Pedrosa many years ago – carried out a first procedure which was a fracture reduction and alignment and external fixation with the use of a cage. This first surgery took 45 minutes and was simply to put the bone back into the perfect position for a second operation. That will take place on Wednesday or Thursday once the swelling to the ankle has gone down and will most likely involve inserting three small plates to keep the bone in place and guarantee the best possible recovery. The plan is that he will then be discharged three days after the second operation, which is next weekend. We will be in Malaysia at that time, so Cal will fly home instead and try to recover as quickly as possible. He will be able to start physiotherapy two weeks after the surgery to try and get himself fit as quickly as he can.”
