Casey Stoner says that he will do “all he can” to be on the grid for the Indianapolis Grand Prix despite confirmation that his right ankle sustained a fracture during a heavy qualifying crash.
The 26-year-old suffered a high-side at the exit of Turn 13 early in the 60 minute session, temporarily dislocating his ankle.
Stoner was transferred from the track’s medical centre to the local Methodist Hospital where doctor’s confirmed that the Australian’s ankle had sustained a fracture and a chip, in addition to extensive ligament damage.
“It’s the first time in my career that I haven’t been able to get up and walk away from an accident myself,” said Stoner of the incident.
“As soon as I stood up, I looked down and saw my foot was at a strange angle to my leg. I had a shooting pain in my lower leg, then I felt a crack as my ankle popped back in. It was very painful and I was sure I had broken something.
“The local staff at the circuit Medical Centre were all very helpful and after taking some initial x-rays they agreed I should go to hospital for further checks.
“They confirmed that I had some chipped bone around my ankle and a small fracture, but I was concerned about the damage done to any ligaments so we did an MRI scan. This showed that I had torn almost every ligament in my ankle and heavily bruised my tibia.”
The rider left hospital at midnight and will meet with MotoGP medical staff in the morning to further assess the possibility of racing.
Currently second in the title standings behind Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo, Stoner says he will do all he can to take up his sixth place grid position for the race.
“I need to see how I feel tomorrow morning to understand if I’m able to race,” he said.
“I am really disappointed as I felt we had the package for pole in this race and a strong chance for the win.
“Many other riders came off today, I hope they are ok. We’ll see how we feel in the morning and will do all we can to be on the grid.”
CLICK HERE for Speedcafe.com’s qualifying report and result
