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Marc Marquez has been forced to undergo a second operation on the arm he broke at Jerez during the first race of the restarted 2020 MotoGP season. During a medical examination, the titanium plate holding the Repsol Honda rider's right humerus together was found to have bent due to stress placed on it. A second operation was needed to remove the bent plate and replace it with a new one.

Marquez will now spend the 48 hours after the operation in hospital, after which he will be evaluated as to whether he will be able to take part in this weekend's Czech round of MotoGP at Brno. Given what just happened at Jerez, and the fact that he has now missed two races, the chances of him actually racing in Brno are zero.

Given this setback, it appears as if Marquez' title defense has fallen at the first hurdle. Entering Brno 50 points down to Fabio Quartararo, with a bunch of tracks coming up where he is strong and the Yamahas could suffer, there was at least a mathematical chance of him still competing for the title. If he misses Brno, and then, as seems extremely likely, he skips the first race in Austria, and possibly the second, then he will be too far behind to have a shot at the championship.

Though the official statement by Dr Mir of the Dexeus Institut insists that Marc Marquez followed medical advice and the feeling in his body during recovery, it was clear that the reigning champion was pushing the limits of his body's ability to heal. The fact that he said he felt something change in his arm during FP4 at the second race in Jerez, when he tried to ride, was a sign of how hard he was pushing himself. But the fact that the bend to the plate was not discovered when he was examined after that race weekend suggests it was still straight at that point.

Since then, Marquez has been hard at work preparing for the triple header at Brno and the Red Bull Ring. Most likely, he was pushing himself too hard in training, and the accumulated stress of that training is what caused the plate to bend.

How long HRC can rein Marquez in remains to be seen. They tried and failed in the brief period between the first race in Jerez and the second, Marquez insisting he be allowed to try to ride. Though he made the right decision to stop when it became apparent he could not ride, it is questionable whether trying to ride was the right decision. HRC was not in a position to deny him, then, however. Perhaps this setback will have strengthened their hand.

The press release from Honda appears below:

Marc Marquez undergoes second surgery

Marc Marquez underwent a second operation today, Monday August 3, after the titanium plate used to fix his right humerus was found to have suffered damage due to stress accumulation. Dr Xavier Mir and his team at the Hospital Universitari Dexeus successfully replaced the titanium plate and Marc Marquez will now stay in hospital for 48 hours before being discharged.

Dr. Xavier Mir
Hospital Universitari Dexeus

“Marc Marquez underwent surgery 13 days ago and today he returned to the operating room. The first operation was successful, what was not expected was that the plate was insufficient. An accumulation of stress in the operated area has caused the plate to suffer some damage, so today the titanium plate has been removed and replaced by a new fixation. The rider has not felt pain during this period. He has always followed the medical advice given and the feeling from his body. Unfortunately, an over stress has caused this issue. Now we have to wait 48 hours to understand the recovery time.”

After trying to ride on Saturday at Jerez, Marc Marquez has been forced to pull out of Sunday's Andalusian Grand Prix at Jerez. The Repsol Honda rider rode reasonably well in FP3, and was passed fit after the session to continue.

But Marquez started to struggle in the afternoon. The reigning champion put in a stint of eight laps on his first run in FP4, but only went out for two more after that. He attempted to ride in Q1, but came back in directly after his out lap, and walked out of the back of the garage and into the truck.

When he emerged from the truck wearing team clothing, his right arm, fractured last week and plated in an operation on Tuesday, was visibly swollen. It was clear that Marquez would not be able to continue, and the Repsol Honda team announced he would sit out the race shortly afterward.

This is the first race Marquez will have missed in his MotoGP career. The last time he missed a race was at Sepang and Valencia, the last two races of 2011, after crashing heavily over water on the track, at a point where no yellow flags were being waved to warn the riders. Marquez suffered nerve damage to an eye in that crash, but was operated on succesfully, and returned the next season.

HRC later released a statement from Repsol Honda team manager Alberto Puig:

"This morning the objective was to make first contact with the bike and we saw that Marc could still be fast. In the afternoon the plan was to do a longer run. Either due to the heat or fatigue from the morning, he experienced more problems and found it more difficult. Obviously we have understood that it was better not to take more risks. We have followed the plan, which was to miss Friday and see how Marc felt today. Now we have analyzed the situation and made the decision not to participate in tomorrow's race. We have followed the plan, always checking the physical condition of the rider. Marc has tried to listen to his body, to see how he responded. When he saw that he could not, we have all decided not to race tomorrow. Marc is very strong. He wanted to try, and we wanted to give him the opportunity to do it, we have supported him at all times. I think we have made the right decision at all times. A champion cannot stay at home if he thinks he has the option or a slight chance. Now he has a lot of inflammation, but it will pass. There are many races ahead and the goal is to arrive in Brno in the best way."

The Jerez medical center has been a busy place for the past hour, with riders coming and going for their medical assessments. Cal Crutchlow, Marc Marquez, and Alex Rins all had to pass a fitness test before being given the all clear to test. All three have been declared fit, and will attempt to ride tomorrow, to assess their fitness on the bike.

Cal Crutchlow fractured his left scaphoid in a crash during Sunday warm up at Jerez last week, and had the scaphoid pinned in place. Although the pinned scaphoid will be painful, he should not have too many problems riding, especially as the injury is to his left hand, rather than his right. Jerez is a clockwise circuit with a lot of right hand corners, and all the hard braking at the circuit is done on the right.

Alex Rins had dislocated his right shoulder and cracked his humerus in a heavy fall at Turn 11 during qualifying. Rins did not need surgery, and has been undergoing intensive therapy to be ready for Jerez. The Suzuki Ecstar rider did sustain some ligament damage, and that will determine how capable his of riding.

Marc Marquez suffered a dislocated fracture of the humerus in his right upper arm, when he crashed during the race and had the front wheel of his Repsol Honda RC213V hit his arm as he and his bike entered the gravel on the exit of Turn 3. At first, doctors feared he had suffered nerve damage, but that proved not to be the case. Marquez had surgery to put the bone back into place and to insert a titanium plate to fix the bone on Tuesday, and decided on Wednesday night to try to ride.

Though the doctors passed him medically fit to race - a judgment that he has enough strength in the arm to control the bike sufficiently that he is not a danger to his fellow competitors - actually riding at the track will be tough. Jerez asks a lot of the right side of a rider's body, and will place a lot of stress on Marquez' injured right arm.

The proof of the pudding will be in the eating, as Rins, Crutchlow, and Marquez all get on their bikes on Friday morning for FP1.

UPDATE

Marc Marquez will sit out all of Friday, and will only ride on Saturday to assess his fitness. Repsol Honda team manager Alberto Puig gave a statement to the media, saying the following:

"Nobody expected to see him here. I mean when the accident happened we were very worried and of course he had to go to Barcelona for surgery. Surgery went, frankly speaking, spectacularly well. We didn't expect - I mean, we know the doctor is good but it was a fantastic job. And after surgery the rider started to feel very well. He started to contact us, saying 'I'm not so bad. I feel well. I'm not having so much pain. I can move the arm'. The nerve situation, as the doctor informed, was okay."

"So originally clearly the Honda position was to cancel this race and to try in Brno. But after what we saw of Marc's wish, after what the doctors said today, declaring him fit, I mean we came to a let's say understanding position that he will try on Saturday and depending on how he's feeling he will try to race or not. But we asked him to check on Saturday first and really understand if he is really capable of doing the distance or not. In case it's too risky, Marc already understood that our idea will be to cancel the race. But from last Sunday to today, things have been going so fast and so quickly that frankly speaking we are very surprised."

Explain the decision to way until Saturday?

"Yes, if it was a new track it would be more difficult. But we have been here for five days so the setup of the bike we know, he knows exactly how to ride the bike on this track. So it's no meaning to try Friday and to give more stress to the injury. So he will try Saturday and after that we will see. But it was very important for Honda and for the Repsol Honda team to also respect the rider's wish. So we get this compromise and then we will see the result on Saturday."

It was a busy day at the Dexeus clinic in Barcelona, as both Marc Marquez and Cal Crutchlow went under the knife to fix injuries picked up at the opening round of the season at Jerez. Marquez broke his right humerus in a fast crash at Turn 3 during the race, while Crutchlow fractured his left scaphoid in a crash during warm up. Surgery was successful for both riders, with no complications reported.

Marc Marquez had the more invasive surgery. The doctors opened his right upper arm to put the broken humerus back together and fix it in place with a titanium plate. The best news from the operation is that there was no nerve damage, which had been a concern in the immediate aftermath of the crash.

With the humerus now plated, Marquez is aiming to return at Brno, to be held on August 9th. If that is too soon, then the Repsol Honda rider will try to race at the first round in Austria a week later.

Cal Crutchlow had the fractured scaphoid in his left hand pinned. The LCR Honda rider will test his wrist on Friday, to see if it will withstand the forces of riding a MotoGP machine.

Below are the press releases from Repsol Honda and LCR Honda:

Successful surgery for Marc Marquez, Alex Marquez prepares for second run in Jerez

Alex Marquez prepares for back-to-back races as reigning World Champion Marc Marquez undergoes surgery on his broken right humerus in Barcelona.

After falling heavily on Sunday, Marc Marquez was diagnosed with a broken right humerus and travelled to Barcelona on Monday to the Hospital Universitari Dexeus. Dr Xavier Mir and his team in collaboration with Dr Barrera performed an open reduction and internal fixation of a titanium plate to the right humerus. The radial nerve was untouched and did not need intervention.

Marc is now recovering from successful surgery and will remain in hospital for up to 48 hours. His aim is to return to the 2020 World Championship as soon as possible with an expected date becoming clearer soon.

Alex Marquez will again mount his Repsol Honda Team RC213V at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto after a solid rookie debut. The Gran Premio Red Bull de Andalucía presents a unique chance to run at the same circuit as the previous race, Alex and his side of the Repsol Honda Team garage able to apply all that they found during the previous weekend. Conditions ahead of the weekend look to again be demanding as temperatures are expected push above 30°C for most of the event. The reigning Moto2 World Champion will be aiming to collect points and finish as the top rookie once more.

Free Practice 1 begins at 09:55 Local Time on Friday, July 24. Lights for the 25-lap Andalucía GP will go out at 14:00 Local Time on Sunday, July 26.

Alex Marquez

“First, I’d like to again wish Marc, Cal and Alex Rins a speedy recovery. From my side as a rider, the situation does not change too much as I have my job, my objectives and I will always push to the maximum to achieve them. Going racing at the same circuit will be interesting, times will be very fast as most people have a good base setting but I am confident for the weekend, I learned a lot in my first GP and now I can apply it directly on the track again.”

Alberto Puig
Team Manager

“Everyone who races in the World Championship has the unfortunate possibility of getting injured and having to go to the operating room. Unfortunately, it was our turn and it was Marc who has had to undergo surgery. Marc will take some time to recover but we are happy with how everything has gone. Doctor Mir and his team have taken care of the entire situation since the fall and performed a successful operation. This gives the Repsol Honda Team a lot of motivation, knowing it went well, but now we have to be patient to see how Marc recovers and to understand when he can return.”

“Cal Crutchlow also had an operation that went well and in principle, his intention is to test the wrist on Friday. We are optimistic about his participation in the Grand Prix."

“This weekend we will be focused on Alex, helping him to take another step forward. When you are young and new in a category, every week you improve and grow. We hope he can close the gap to the front of the race.”

SUCCESSFUL SURGERY FOR CRUTCHLOW IN BARCELONA

21 July 2020 | Barcelona

LCR Honda CASTROL rider Cal Crutchlow has undergone successful surgery on his injured left wrist. The Briton reported a fracture to his left scaphoid after crashing during the warm-up session at the Spanish GP last Sunday.

This morning, Dr. Xavier Mir performed surgery on Crutchlow's wrist at the Hospital Universitari Quirón DEXEUS in Barcelona. The surgeon was pleased with how the procedure went.

Lucio Cecchinello

“I would like to thank Dr. Mir and his medical team for performing surgery on Cal’s left wrist this morning. A small screw has been inserted into his scaphoid to fix the fracture. The surgery went well as Dr. Mir personally informed me, and Cal will be discharged from the hospital later this afternoon. If everything goes well, we expect him back at the Angel Nieto Circuit in Jerez on Thursday morning, where he will be visited by Dorna’s Medical Director, Dr. Ángel Charte who will assess his fitness to race. Our technical staff is working to have everything ready to allow Cal to ride in Friday’s morning practice.”