Seven-time MotoGP world champion Marc Marquez will miss the next two races due to a fracture and ligament injury in his right shoulder, his team announced.
The Ducati rider was flown to Madrid after crashing on the first lap of the Indonesian Grand Prix, when he was knocked off balance by Italian Marco Beceki (Aprilia).
Immediately upon his arrival in Spain, he underwent a detailed medical examination, which revealed "a fracture in the area of the coracoid process and damage to the ligaments of the right shoulder." The team stressed that the injury was not related to previous surgery on the same shoulder.
As doctors stated, there is no significant bone displacement, so surgery is not necessary. Marquez will follow a conservative recovery plan that includes rest and immobilization of the injured shoulder until it is fully healed, which will cause him to miss the races in Australia (October 17–19) and Malaysia (October 24–26).
"Fortunately, the injury is not serious, but it is important to respect the recovery time. My goal is to return before the end of the season, but without rushing and in accordance with the doctors' recommendations. We have achieved all our goals, both team and personal, so now the priority is a full recovery," said Marquez, who won his seventh world championship title in Japan last week.
The thirty-two-year-old Spaniard's progress will be assessed on a weekly basis, and his return to the track will depend on the speed of his recovery.
Marquez already had a serious injury to the same shoulder in 2020, which caused him to miss the entire season after multiple surgeries.
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