Joan Mir will miss next weekend’s San Marino Grand Prix after being told by doctors he has to rest his fractured ankle for 15 days in order to aid his recovery.
The Suzuki rider suffered the injury in a fearsome high-side accident while entering Turn 4 at the Red Bull Ring in last weekend’s Austrian GP, the 2020 MotoGP world champion diagnosed with a fractured right ankle soon after the crash before heading to the Hospital Juaneda Miramar in Palma de Mallorca on Monday to undergo further tests.
Having taken an extra MRI scan as well as a CT scan, it was found he had suffered both bone and ligament damage to the ankle – with Dr Juan Garcias of the hospital recommending Mir undergo a 15 day rest period before going for further tests to evaluate his potential to return for next month’s Aragon GP.
Mir conceded that while it was a “tough decision” to skip the San Marino GP at Misano, he is “confident” that he will regain enough fitness to return to his GSX-RR at Aragon in the middle of September.
“After undergoing several tests, the doctors have advised me to take 15 days’ rest and another evaluation after that period,” said Mir.
“Unfortunately, I will miss the Misano race, but I am confident I can return in Aragon.
“I want to thank Dainese and AGV for protecting me and avoiding a more serious injury after the hard crash I had on Sunday.
“It’s been a tough season, but I’m convinced that we’ll come back stronger to bring more good moments to my team and to all of you who support me”.
Mir’s latest set-back comes after a disastrous opening 13 events of the 2022 MotoGP season in which he is yet to score a rostrum result – which combined with a total of six DNF’s currently sees him sitting a lowly 12th in the riders standings, four places behind team-mate Alex Rins.
It has not yet been disclosed who if anyone will substitute for the Spaniard at Misano, with Suzuki’s options narrowed by the fact chief European test rider Sylvain Guintoli will be unable to step in due to suffering from a injured hand sustained in a crash during testing for the Suzuka 8 Hours earlier this month.
Suzuki does at least have ex-MotoGP rider Xavier Simeon on its books as one of the manufacturer’s Endurance World Championship riders, the Belgian having spent a season in the premier class on an Avintia-run Ducati in 2018 where he scored a best result of 15th in the Australian GP – a finish that saw him earn his solitary MotoGP point to date.
