subsequent left-hander, under
the wheels of the pack.
Bagnaia was massively lucky
to escape with no broken bones
after his horrible high-side, not
to mention even more massively
lucky that it was only his legs
that were run over by Brad Bind
-
er's KTM, rather than his chest
or
his neck. The outcome then
doesn't bear thinking about.
All the same, "severe polytrau
-
ma … in the femoral and tibial
area"
are not words describing
trivial injuries.
Pecco amazed everybody at
the following weekend's Mi-
sano GP. Four days after being
carted
off in an ambulance
and transferred to hospital for
investigation, he was back in the
paddock. He was stiff and sore
but able to walk to and from
his paddock scooter without
crutches. Passed as fit for the
race, he was back on his Des
-
C
hampionships often hinge
on crashes. Usually in a
bad way. It might hap-
pen again in 2023. Thanks to a
horror
crash in Catalunya, with
an extraordinarily fortunate
outcome.
Pecco Bagnaia led off the line
through the first corner. Rivals
and fans alike held their breath
after witnessing the defending
champion flung violently into
the middle of the track in the
P138
CN II IN THE PADDOCK
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
HISTORY LOOMS OVER PECCO'S
CATALAN CATASTROPHE
Just four days after
being carted off in
an ambulance and
transferred to a hospital
for investigation,
Francesco Bagnaia was
back in the paddock and
throwing a leg over his
Lenovo Ducati.
PHOTO:
GOLD & GOOSE
