Hayden Knocked Out of Red Bull Indy GP
Henny Ray Abrams | August 18, 2012
SPEEDWAY, IN, AUG 18 – Ducati Marlboro’s Nicky Hayden is recovering at Methodist Hospital after a vicious high-side in MotoGP qualifying at Indianapolis Motor Speedway that knocked him out of Sunday’s Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix.
Hayden was leaned over in the double left Turns 13 & 14 when he lost control and the Ducati Desmosedici GP12 pitched him over the high-side. It was the same corner where Repsol Honda’s Casey Stoner and Yamaha’s Ben Spies also crashed.
The official MotoGP Twitter feed said, “Nicky Hayden declared unfit for the race #MotoGP.” The MotoGP accident report also listed Hayden as unfit.
“There’s nothing to worry about in the big picture,” Ducati Marlboro’s Chris Jonnum said. Jonnum said that Hayden had hit his head quite hard, losing consciousness and some memory. “He asked some strange questions.” But by the time Jonnum left the hospital, Hayden was “pretty much normal.”
Hayden’s underwent a CAT scan and also an x-ray of his right hand. Results of the CAT scans were negative. He has two small non-displaced fractures of the second and third metacarpal on his right hand. He’s expected to be discharged this evening or tomorrow morning.
With the RBIGP being Hayden’s home race, the 2006 MotoGP World Champion wanted very much to line up on the grid for the legion of friends and family that made the three hour drive north from Owensboro, but that won’t happen.
Henny Ray Abrams | Contributing Editor
Abrams is the longest-serving contributor at Cycle News. Over the course of his 35-some years of writing and shooting photos, he’s covered events from MotoGP to the Motocross World Championship - and everything in between.
