Morbidelli injures collarbone, undergoes hospital checks

Franco Morbidelli has suffered a severe contusion to his left collarbone following his violent crash early in the MotoGP sprint race at the Sachsenring on Saturday.

After being examined at the circuit medical centre, the 30-year-old Italian rider was transferred to hospital in Chemnitz for further evaluation.

Should Morbidelli miss the German Grand Prix on Sunday, he will join the entire Tech3 KTM team on the sidelines. This follows Enea Bastianini’s appendicitis diagnosis ahead of the weekend and Maverick Vinales fracturing his shoulder in qualifying.

With the second LCR Honda also vacant following Somkiat Chantra’s recent training accident, it may be a grid of only 18 riders taking the green flag on Sunday.

Morbidelli crashed out of second place at high speed during the sprint, losing control of his VR46 Ducati at Turn 8 before cartwheeling multiple times through the gravel trap.

It was the Roman’s second accident of the day at the left-hander. He also crashed in the latter stages of qualifying, robbing him of the chance to complete a promising lap.

Morbidelli’s day could best be summed up as fast but fragile. Even with the accident in qualifying, he set a time good enough for fourth place on the starting grid – a feat bettered in 2025 only by his front-row start in Aragon.

He started and navigated the first lap of the race well to slot into second behind Marco Bezzecchi’s Aprilia – a lofty position for Morbidelli in 2025. Unfortunately, the crash in the race means what he could have achieved in the sprint will remain unknown.

Bezzecchi’s team-mate Fabio di Giannantonio was able to finish the race fourth, but his performance in the wet on Saturday did not quite match what he had produced on Friday in the dry.

Though he was pleased with his progress through the wet Saturday, Di Giannantonio will likely be hoping for a return to slick-tyre weather on Sunday. Such hopes may be dashed, however, with showers forecast around the time the grand prix is due to start.