MotoGP riders Takaaki Nakagami and Alex Rins will undergo further medical checks in a Barcelona hospital after their scary incident at the start of the Catalan Grand Prix.
Nakagami fell at Turn 1 after a lightning start and tagged the rear of Francesco Bagnaia’s Ducati Desmosedici with his head – while his LCR Honda then went on to take out the Rins on the outside line.
Nakagami’s visor appeared to come off after the impact, and the physical consequences of the accident weren’t immediately clear – but the race was not suspended, and yellow flags at Turn 1 were cleared in two laps’ time.
His LCR team announced after the race that “no serious head injuries” were detected and his collarbone “appears to be fine” but that he had pain in his right shoulder.
The 30-year-old Japanese rider was taken to the Barcelona circuit’s medical centre after the accident, and then to the Hospital General de Catalunya in Barcelona.
Nakagami, who has been with LCR for all five of his MotoGP seasons so far, is currently 16th in the 2022 standings.
He has been subject to speculation over the future of his ride for 2022 – with young Honda protege Ai Ogura in contention to replace him.
Rins, for his part, was seen without substantial injuries on the TV feed, but subsequently went to the medical centre of his own volition due to what MotoGP described as “some pain in his left hand”.
The series then confirmed that the Suzuki man, now seventh in the standings, would likewise be headed to a hospital in Barcelona albeit a different one – the Dexeus clinic.
