It doesn’t come as much of a surprise to hear that James Stewart’s injuries turned out to be more serious than previously thought. Apparently, closer inspection of his wrist revealed a broken scaphoid (aka navicular) which he had surgery on today (Friday, January 29).
The broken wrist was likely suffered at round two in Phoenix – not in his controversial tangle with Chad Reed, but earlier in his heat race. Stewart unintentionally crossed lines with Kyle Partridge heading into the first lap, and consequently, Partridge landed on Stewart, who took the brunt of the crash.
Quite obviously, Stewart will not be racing round four in San Francisco tomorrow at AT&T Park. His return to racing is not yet known, but will likely be as soon as humanly possible. Especially after the Phoenix round, it’s plain to see how determined Stewart is to fight for his championship, and how badly he wants to be out on the track. The defending champion raced to a third-place finish at Anaheim II even though his wrist was broken at the time.
Adding to a list of injured riders, Stewart now joins Chad Reed and Josh Grant (both of whom recorded race wins last season) on the sidelines. With three heavy title contenders starting the season with considerable setbacks, rookie Suzuki rider Ryan Dungey now has the odds in his favor. Stewart’s San Manuel teammate, Josh Hill, also has championship hopes alive, as do Ryan Villopoto and Andrew Short.
The following is a release from the L&M Racing San Manuel Yamaha team…
Team San Manuel Yamaha’s James Stewart underwent surgery this afternoon, to repair a broken scaphoid in his right wrist. Following Round 3 of the 2010 Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, in Anaheim, CA, Stewart continued to experience severe pain in the wrist. Although previous x-rays had not indicated there was a break, an MRI performed yesterday and reviewed by medical experts today, revealed the bone was broken. Surgery was performed immediately by orthopedic surgeon Dr. Arthur Ting, of Fremont, CA and was completed without incidence.
As a result of the surgery, Stewart will not be competing in San Francisco this weekend. His return to the race track will depend on how quickly he is able to recover post-surgery and will be evaluated and determined on a weekly basis.
“James is a true champion. The fact that he rode as competitively as he did making the podium at Anaheim 2 with a broken wrist (unknowingly) is testimony to that. He’s anxious to heal and get back on the race track as soon as possible,” said Larry Brooks, Team Manager.
