The 23-year-old has revealed the full extent of his injury in a social media video post uploaded in the wake of the Symmons Plains event.
Payne had told media in the days leading up to the event that it was only a sprain, downplaying any suggestions it would impact him in the car.
“It’s time to come clean,” Payne said in the video released today.
“I’ve had a bit of an injury, probably worse than what I have been making it out to be
“It ended up being I think seven screws and a plate. It’s not a small fracture. It’s quite big.
“I just wanted to keep it quiet to focus on what I wanted to do, and that’s drive fast.”
Payne was required to undergo a medical clearance to compete, which he received on the Tuesday of the event.
The driver confirmed he had been riding with trainer Heath Medrum at the time of the accident.
“Heath and I were out mountain biking,” he said.
“We were about five minutes in, and unfortunately I’ve just washed the front, went down, and I’ve braced with my left hand.
“That was the moment I knew that I was not able to ride out of here. I needed to walk back to the car and obviously go from there.”
Meldrum also appeared in the video and confirmed Payne’s revelation.
“The moment it happened, it was obviously just management from that point. Essentially we had Matt in for surgery on the Tuesday,” Meldrum said.
“From there, just that process of all hands on deck, making sure that the rehab process was at 100 percent from day one.”
Payne said in the aftermath of a second place finish on Sunday that he hopes to be fully fit by the Darwin Triple Crown on June 19-21.
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