LCR Honda’s Takaaki Nakagami and Suzuki’s Alex Rins will have more medical checks in a Barcelona hospital after a harrowing crash at the opening of the Catalan Grand Prix.
After a rapid start in Sunday’s Catalan Grand Prix race, Nakagami tumbled at Turn 1 and tagged the back of Francesco Bagnaia’s Ducati Desmosedici with his head, before his LCR Honda took out the Rins on the outside line.
However, the race was not suspended, and yellow flags at Turn 1 were cleared in two laps as Nakagami’s visor looked to fall off after the hit, and the physical effects of the accident were not immediately evident.
After the race, his LCR team stated that he suffered “no significant head injuries” and that his collarbone “appears to be good,” but that he was experiencing pain in his right shoulder. The 30-year old was transferred to the Barcelona circuit’s medical centre, and then to Barcelona’s Hospital General de Catalunya.
Nakagami is now 16th in the 2022 standings, having spent all five of his MotoGP seasons with LCR. He’s been the focus of conjecture about his ride’s future for 2022, with young Honda prodigy Ai Ogura in the running to replace him.
Meanwhile, Rins was spotted on the TV broadcast after the race without any obvious injuries, but went to the medical centre of his own will owing to “some soreness in his left hand,” according to MotoGP.
The Suzuki rider, who is currently eighth in the standings, was subsequently informed that he, too, would be going to a hospital in Barcelona, albeit a different one – the Dexeus facility.
