It was a dramatic Race 2 at the Pirelli-Emilia Romagna Round for Spanish rider Xavi Vierge (Team HRC) during the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship’s visit to the Misano World Circuit “Marco Simoncelli”. The rookie was fighting in the second group for fifth place after a strong Sunday before a crash at Turn 11 ended his race and his hopes of a second top-five finish of the day.

In Sunday’s Tissot Superpole Race, Vierge used Pirelli’s new SCQ tyre to full advantage as he moved through the field to claim fourth place and it looked like he was going to be able to challenge Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) for a podium. Although he settled for fourth, it was his best result to date in WorldSBK and he secured a fourth-place start for Race 2 later on Sunday.

Once again in Race 2, Vierge was battling for a top-five finish but a crash on Lap 12 at the high-speed Turn 11 put him out of the race. Following the crash, he was taken to the medical centre for a check-up and diagnosed with a fracture to the base of his third metacarpal bone on his right hand, and a fracture to his capitate and hamate bones on his right wrist, rendering him unfit; although with a five-week gap between the Emilia-Romagna Round and UK Round, Vierge will be hoping he his injuries can heal before WorldSBK visits Donington Park.

After the race and his visit to the medical centre, Vierge said: “The crash was a real pity because we’ve had an incredible weekend and were running a really good second race. I think the other rider overtook me, touching my front wheel, so I found myself in direct line with the wall and had to jump off the bike. I was lucky because I touched the ground at very high speed. After an initial check, it looks like I might have broken something in my right hand but nothing important. So, first thing tomorrow I will undergo more comprehensive examinations to understand our next steps in order to be ready to ride as soon as possible. I want to say thank you so much to my team and technicians because they are doing an amazing job.”

In a statement sent on Monday afternoon, Team HRC confirmed Vierge would have surgery on his injury. The statement said: “After injuring his right hand in a racing incident that occurred during the second WorldSBK race at the Misano World Circuit on June 12, Xavi Vierge has undergone further medical tests this morning as planned. The examinations, carried out by Dr. Xavi Mir at the Hospital Universitario Quiron Dexeus in Barcelona, Spain, have confirmed six fractures to the rider’s right hand, two of which require surgery. The two bones in question are the third metacarpal bone and the hamate bone, which will be operated on by Dr. Mir and his team on Thursday. The surgery will not be done any earlier because it is important to wait three days to be sure that Xavi is suffering no consequences from the blow to the head that he suffered in the fall.”

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