Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1088768
IN THE WIND P32 Herlings Sits Out 2019 MXGP Opener J effrey Herlings (Red Butll KTM) did not suit up for the opening round of the 2019 MXGP sea- son in Argentina, March 3. The defending MXGP Championship injured his foot while training in January and had surgery at that time. His recovery is still ongoing, the foot still in a cast. The injury will be re-evaluated March 11. "I cannot really feel too much with my foot because of the cast," Herlings said before the Argentina race, "but it seems to be progress- ing well after the operation, and I'm looking forward to having some of the pins removed in a couple of weeks when I can also change the cast. It's a pity to miss Argen- tina. I think last year was one of the best races of the season. It's also one of my favorite tracks: wide, fast and sandy. It's a big shame that we won't be there, but it is what it is." Joel Smets, KTM Moto- cross Sport Director, elabo- rated: "Jeffrey's injury is not as 'simple' as a collarbone or another part of the body; it's quite tricky, actually, and it is something that we will have to monitor and look at the rehabili- tation. Obviously, a rider's foot comes under a lot of punish- ment in motocross with the many jumps and bumps. So we are being careful and will hopefully have a better idea in the coming weeks of how his recovery is going." CN Jeffrey Herlings missed the opening round of the MXGP season in Argentina. Craig Suffers Another Setback C hristian Craig of the Geico Honda Team suffered another setback when he discovered the thumb he injured back in Decem- ber, which required surgery at the time, is still not up to snuff. He tried coming back at the 250SX East opener in Minneapolis, February 9, but the thumb was still bothering him and causing a lot of pain. Turns out, after having a CT scan last week, the thumb was dis- located and needed surgery again. He reported on Instagram:"6 weeks after my initial surgery, my thumb showed enough heal- ing where I thought I could ride it back into feeling normal. The pain did not get any better so I went in for a CT scan on Mon- day [February 19], which showed a completely dislocated thumb, again. Although I couldn't be- lieve this, it explained why I was in so much pain in Minneapolis [and] anytime I rode. I had a dif- ferent type of surgery done yes- terday [February 22] that is much more ideal and a faster recovery for an athlete. Craig said that he plans to get on the bike again in a couple of weeks. CN (Below) Christian Craig had a second surgery performed on his injured wrist.