The Donington round had started uphill and ended in a decidedly negative way for Michael Ruben Rinaldi, involved in an accident in the very early stages of Race 2. The Aruba standard-bearer was looking for redemption after a complicated first heat and a short Superpole Race satisfying, but what could have been a comeback race turned into a nightmare.
A carom crash at the exit of Turn 8 triggered by a highside from Tom Sykes involved Loriz Baz and Rinaldi himself. All three ended up on the ground, but while the Frenchman of the Bonovo team didn’t suffer any consequences when he returned to the pits, things went worse for the other two. The Ducati rider was left on the ground and was promptly rescued on the track, leaving everyone breathless. Red flag and race stopped, so scared to then breathe a sigh of relief: all the riders were conscious.
Rinaldi was taken to the Medical Center, where he was diagnosed with a minor head injury, accompanied by an injury to his right ankle. There was a lot of fear, but the rider from Romagna can tell it and explains the dynamics: “Sykes fell in front of me, to avoid him I closed the gas. Baz was inside and couldn’t see Tom falling. So he didn’t shut off the gas and hit me straight. He grabbed my leg and pulled the bike out from under me. I don’t remember the fall, my last memory is Sykes falling. Then I found myself with pain in my leg and doctors around me. Fortunately it went well, it could have been worse ”.
Michael Ruben Rinaldi, Aruba.it Racing Ducati
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
“Obviously at home I will do further tests, the rays have excluded fractures but I will have to do an MRI. I had a concussion in my head, but I’m lucid, I remember almost everything. Too bad, because we had the speed but we didn’t collect anything. But the most important thing when such episodes happen is health. I also wish Sykes to recover soon,” says Rinaldi.
Sykes himself was the rider who suffered the most serious consequences, suffering a chest injury and a fractured ribs, as well as an injury to his left ankle. The British BMW team was transported to Queens hospital in Nottingham for further tests.
Thus ends a decidedly complicated round for both Rinaldi and Sykes. However, the Superbike World Championship will stop for another two weeks, before returning to action at Imola. The Aruba standard-bearer will take advantage of the break to rest and get back in shape, with the aim of returning to his home appointment recovered.
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