Marlboro Ducati's Nicky Hayden has broken his left shoulder blade and fractured two ribs in a 'freak' flat-track accident near his Kentucky home - it was the first time he had ridden a bike since his Valencia MotoGP crash.
The Owensboro rider has undergone CAT and MRI scans and there are currently no plans for surgery but the 2006 MotoGP world champion will be assessed by Dr Ting in California next week. It is not yet known whether he will be able to attend the first MotoGP test session at Sepang at the end of next month.
"Obviously, injuries are never good but it’s part of motorcycle racing. Just like at Valencia, it was kind of a freak accident. I was starting to train again, like I normally do during the winter, at a private track near my house," said Hayden.
"I came up behind another rider, and he went to move out of the way. I wasn’t going that fast, but he clipped my front wheel and I went down and landed pretty hard on my left shoulder, and that was it. It’s disappointing, but there’s nothing to do about it but heal quickly. Anyway, this doesn’t change my expectations for 2012 which, fortunately, is just around the corner.”
