Bradley Smith - Photo Credit: Tech 3
Bradley Smith will miss this weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix after fracturing his left collarbone in first practice at Sepang. The Briton was one of four riders to go down at turn ten early in the session as drops of rain started to fall at that part of the circuit and it was contact with Marc Marquez's Suter that did the damage.
Marquez had already followed Jules Cluzel off the track but as the Spaniard, and his bike, lied in the gravel trap, Smith suffered a high side on his Tech 3 Mistral 610 and tumbled into Marquez's prone bike.
Early indications suggested he may have broken a rib but after a check-up at the Pusat Perubatan UKM Medical Centre in Kuala Lumpur, the 20 year old was cleared of any internal injuries but diagnosed with a cracked left collarbone, ending his participation in this weekend's race.
Smith was discharged later in the evening and will return to the Sepang circuit tomorrow for consultations with Clinica Mobile staff on the recovery of his damaged collarbone. It is uncertain at this stage whether he will be fit enough to return at the season finale in Valencia two weeks from now.
Cluzel looks on as Marquez crashes out. Smith would soon join them, crashing into the Suter (Photo Credit: MotoGP.com)
The major concern surrounding the incident was the lack of warning from the marshals with neither the white & red rain flag nor the red & yellow slippery surface flag shown at turn ten. The organisers of the Malaysian Grand Prix have been punished as a result with a €15,000 fine.
