Source: Ducati Corse.

Ducati Team’s Cal Crutchlow will be absent from this weekend’s Argentina round of the MotoGP World Championship at the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit.

After a crash in the race at Austin, Crutchlow had initially been diagnosed with a dislocated right little finger, but further checks at a specialised centre in San Diego revealed that the British rider had also suffered a tiny fracture of the finger. As a result it was decided that he should undergo a small operation to insert a stabilising pin.

Crutchlow, who already knows the Termas de Rio Hondo track after taking part in two days of testing last year, hoped to recover in time for the Argentinean race but unfortunately continuing intense pain in his right hand, which prevents him from using the front brake correctly, has forced him to abandon.

He will now return to England to continue treatment and try and get ready for the Jerez race.

“I am very sad to let the team down like this because I was really looking forward to racing in Argentina,” Crutchlow commented. “On Tuesday I had some scans on my hand and we saw that my finger was still dislocated from the crash and also broken so Dr. Chao decided to put a pin in to stabilise it.

“Unfortunately I’m still feeling too much pain in my right hand, my knuckles are the most painful part and I’m not in condition to race this weekend. Now I’m going back to the UK to continue treatment and try and get ready for the race at Jerez.”

Crutchlow will be replaced in Argentina by Italian Michele Pirro, the test rider for the Ducati Team.