Miguel Oliveira will not compete in this weekend’s Argentina MotoGP due to an injury sustained in his crash with Marc Marquez.
RNF Aprilia rider Miguel Oliveira marks the fourth full-time 2023 MotoGP rider to miss this weekend’s Argentinean Grand Prix due to injuries he sustained after his collision with another rider during the Portuguese Grand Prix.
During the second lap of the Portuguese race, Honda’s Marc Marquez outbraked himself into Turn 3. The Spaniard clipped Jorge Martin before slamming into the side of Oliveira, taking out the RNF Aprilia rider.
The Repsol Honda rider was already guaranteed to miss Argentina the following weekend as a result, but the RNF Aprilia rider has now been eliminated as well after an additional injury was found when he was checked.
Oliveira will therefore forgo the Argentinean Grand Prix in an effort to be fully recovered for the Americas Grand Prix in three weeks, and RNF confirmed in its brief statement that it would not be stepping in to replace the Portuguese racer.
“Local hero and MotoGP rider Miguel Oliveira will not be participating in the upcoming Argentina Grand Prix due to a recent injury,” the statement from RNF Racing read.
“Following his crash at the Portuguese Grand Prix, Oliveira underwent further testing in his hometown where further damage have been revealed, which doesn’t allow him to start the second GP of the season.”
“Despite the setback, Oliveira remains committed to his goal of being competitive in the World Championship and will focus on his recovery in order to return to the saddle of his Aprilia RS-GP at round three of the season in Austin, Texas just two weeks later.”
“The entire CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP team wishes Oliveira a speedy recovery and looks forward to his return to racing. He will not be replaced in Argentina.”
“Updates regarding his condition will be released by the CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team in the near future.”
Marquez apologised for initiating the incident, which injured his toe and ankle and ultimately brought an end to his race as well. He also clashed with Jorge Martin and according to the Honda rider, he didn’t attempt to overtake anyone, and he attributed the collision to his front tire locking.
Marquez’s attempt to pass was deemed to be an overly ambitious move by Oliveira and Martin.
This weekend’s injured riders include Pol Espargaro, who broke his vertebra in a terrible practice crash on Friday, as well as factory Ducati rider Enea Bastianini, who fractured his right shoulder after being struck by VR46’s Luca Marini in the sprint race on Saturday.
Only 18 riders may arrive at the Termas de Rio Hondo for practice on Friday since no replacement riders have yet been announced for the weekend.
