Niccolo Canepa is sure that he will be able to return to action in the second round of the WorldSBK season in Thailand next month, having sustained injuries when crashing out of the first race in Sunday’s Australian season-opener.

‘Niccolo Canepa was unfortunate to have a fall in Race 1 and suffered an injured left ankle, with a suspected snapped tendon,’ a team press release explains.

Final medical checks, when the swelling has gone down, will determine the full effect of the fall but he is fully expecting to be in action again at the next round of the championship in Thailand on 22nd March.

“The tendon in my left ankle seems broken, maybe 99% sure,” Canepa explained later on Sunday. “We have to check after five days when the swelling goes down. It is really hurting right now but the doctors say there is no evidence that the bone is broken, so that is good, but I feel it may be.

“There was a technical issue and between the first and second corner I crashed. We will have to see what happened later. We are lucky because there is one month from here to Thailand so we can get 100% ready.”

Naturally disappointed about his team-mate’s injury, Team Manager Larry Pegram ensured the team collected its first points of 2015 as he scored two for 14th place.