The images of Aleix Espargaró’s crash at turn 12 at Silverstone, with 24 minutes remaining in FP4, the last free practice session of the weekend, were long in coming, prolonging the enormous scare it caused among the fans, the team and rivals.
There were only onboard images of the fall, but you could see, live, Aleix prostrated on the ground trying to get up without success, not even with help, he couldn’t put his feet on the ground.
Something serious was feared for a good number of minutes, including that he was not going to be able to go ahead with the weekend and, with it, lose the options of fighting for the title, a situation in which the de Granollers.
In the end the news improved substantially, everything was left in a strong blow and the championship doctor reassured: “We have given him tranquilizers and he will be able to go out to play Q2”, said Ángel Charte at first, just before a fixed camera of the circuit offered an image, of poor quality, of the impressive costalazo that the runner gave himself.
The medical part was later expanded: “High energy crash. Neurological and thoraco-abdominal examination with normal results. normal constants. Bilateral contusion of both ankles, with a higher incidence in the right ankle. Calcaneal contusion. negative radiology. Anti-inflammatory and analgesic treatment”, he reassured.
After mending his boots and changing his suit, Aleix entered the Aprilia box with a noticeable limp, and similarly got on his RS-GP to tackle Q2. Until that moment he had been the fastest driver of the weekend over one lap, in FP3. But on his first try, he finished last.
It seemed that the blow was going to take its toll and complicate the weekend. But the Catalan, without getting off the bike, changed the rear tire, gritted his teeth and went out on the track alone, without looking for a wheel, just clean air to close a monumental turn in 1.57.966, pulverizing the pole record, which was in the hands of Marc Márquez since 2019 (1.58.168). The crush was immediately swallowed up by the turns of up to five pilots, who managed to improve the time, setting the new record at 1.57.767, but Aleix’s performance had been immaculate, at least on a dry lap.
From that moment on, Aprilia entered into a kind of psychological game. He first reported that Aleix’s activities before the media were on hold. 28 minutes later, they said that Espargaró was going to attend the media at half past four in the afternoon, local time.
Finally, eight minutes before the appointment, a final message arrived on the journalists’ mobile phones: “Dear friend, after the last check-up at the Clinic, Aleix will rest until tomorrow. Your situation, especially with regards to pain, will then be evaluated. So all activities for today are cancelled”, leaving his participation in the race in ‘doubt’ depending on how the pain suffered by the pilot evolves.
A ‘doubt’ that his rivals do not buy. “I don’t believe it, he won’t miss the race,” Fabio Quartararo told the DAZN microphones, although the Frenchman did regret the fall. “He has been very strong, I hope he is well and recovers as soon as possible.”
Pecco Bagnaia also has no doubts, as he assured at a press conference that “the time he has done in qualifying tells me that Aleix will run”.
