Alex Marquez is on his way to Madrid with the intention of undergoing surgery to his fractured left hand as soon as possible following his MotoGP Dutch Grand Prix crash on Sunday.
Autosport understands that the Spaniard could get an operation as early as Sunday evening.
The Gresini Ducati rider was battling Pedro Acosta’s KTM for fourth place early in the race, with the pair making contact as they passed through Strubben corner on lap six.
With the corner some way behind them but the pair still leaning on each other, Alex suddenly locked his front tyre, which gave a puff of smoke as the bike tipped its rider straight onto the ground.
After finishing second to Marc in the Saturday sprint, the zero-score on Sunday means Alex has fallen even further behind his brother in the championship standings. The difference between them is now 68 points.
More information about Alex’s expected recovery timeline is expected to emerge on Monday.
The next MotoGP race takes place in Germany in two weeks.
Speaking to Dorna after the race, Gresini team manager Michele Masini said he did not want Marquez to rush back to action too quickly.
“The only thing I will ask Alex is that he should take his time to recover well and restart from where we are – at the top,” he said.
Masini also confirmed that a touch on the brake lever during the contact with Acosta was the cause of the fall.
“We saw from the data that there was a lot of pressure on the front brake and for sure it led to the crash,” he added.
Soon after Marquez hit the deck, race direction concluded that there would be no further investigation of the incident.
The Gresini mechanics will have a lot of work to do in the wake of the Assen weekend after Fermin Aldeguer suffered a high-side in a separate but almost concurrent incident to Marquez’s.
“It was a bad day for us, definitely,” said Masini. “Fermin had a nasty crash, but he is okay at least.”
In a strange footnote to the trouble that unfolded on lap six of the Dutch Grand Prix, Acosta also had to visit hospital after the race – despite finishing it safely in fourth. That’s because the Murcian was stung by a bee and suffered an allergic reaction.
