Following a heavy fall in Race 2 at the opening round of the FIM Motocross World Championship in Patagonia, Argentina, Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP’s Romain Febvre will undergo surgery next week to repair a severely broken ankle.
After taking the first Qualifying Race victory of the season, Febvre was looking in top form to put chase to his second MXGP World Title. The former World Champion finished third in Race 1 and was running in third-position in Race 2 when he unfortunately caught an edge in the wave section and was thrown from his YZ450FM. He landed heavily on his right ankle and was immediately taken to the Medical Centre for examination. While he was cleared from injury in Argentina, he was in an immense amount of pain and decided to see another doctor for a second opinion upon arrival in Belgium, the country in which the Frenchman resides.
Earlier today, the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP star went to the University Hospital Antwerp (UZA) where top Orthopaedic specialist Dr. Geert Peersman confirmed he has broken his Talus (ankle) in two places. The injury requires surgical repair, which is scheduled for Tuesday 12th March, and is expected to take six weeks to heal after the date of the operation.
An update on his return to racing will be shared on www.Yamaha-Racing.com and Yamaha’s Official social media platforms when available.
Romain Febvre, Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Rider, “Sad news today. I broke the Talus bone in my ankle. I feel really sad, not only for myself but for my entire team and all of the people involved. This is how it is; these things are part of our sport. Now I need to focus on getting it fixed with an operation next Tuesday, and then I can start my rehabilitation. I will try to be back on the bike as soon as possible, right now they are saying around six weeks more or less, but even when I get back on the bike I will have lost a lot of time and physical condition with no training. I will see when I am back on the bike how things are going and what I am focusing on, until then I can not say too much. The main goal is to get my foot fixed.”
Massimo Raspanti, Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP Team Manager: “Obviously we are really saddened to hear this news, also for Romain. He worked really hard this winter. Things were looking really positive for him. In Argentina he was fast in both practice sessions and then he won the Qualifying Race so we were really excited for the races and the rest of the season. He was riding well in the races, he set the fastest lap of the GP, so he is very unlucky to crash and be in this situation now. Now we will focus on getting him healthy and back to 100% and hope to come back and finish the season strong.” Author: Yamaha Racing
