MotoGP: Impressive performance for Crutchlow despite broken hand

Cal Crutchlow has pulled off an impressive performance in today’s qualifying session for the Malaysian Grand Prix, finishing fifth despite crashing out of the session and remounting. Not even returning to the pits after the crash, the LCR Honda rider was able to make a huge seven-place improvement despite riding with crash damage.

“I made a mistake in qualifying two by slipping off, and I think I did well to get back on the bike because the handlebar was totally bent and the brake lever was binding the brake on. To ride the bike with the handlebar as bad as this and still improve the lap time was quite good, but a little dangerous, so I don’t plan on doing it again! I had to make sure I wasn’t 12^th on the grid though, because I didn’t want to be anywhere near Barbera or Baz.”

But while that performance might have in itself been impressive, he discovered after the session that he was riding with a broken bone in his left hand, after falling during free practice three this morning and colliding with a kerbstone, leaving him with pain in both hands.

“The hand isn’t good. I heard something pop in the left one, and the right one is really painful. Even riding in the rain was painful, so riding in the dry is going to be difficult.

“I hit the kerb with my hands. It’s ridiculous – I don’t even know why there’s a big raised kerb there. We’ve asked them to move it, because we don’t need it and Formula One don’t use it either. In the end, I bounced off it, like everyone else who has crashed there. Ben Spies really hurt himself on the same kerb, and we’ve asked ever since for it to be moved and they haven’t.”

However, despite the broken left metacarpal, the Australian and Czech Grand Prix winner will line up for tomorrow’s race.