Kawasaki’s
Chris Vermeulen will sit out the remainder of the
2010 World Superbike season to rehabilitate his injured knee. The Australian rider reinjured his already damaged right knee at the most recent SBK round at Brno. Vermeulen will seek medical advice regarding his recovery, including possible knee reconstruction.
Injured Kawasaki World Superbike rider Chris Vermeulen will sit out the remainder of the 2010 season to rehab his injured right knee.
Vermeulen, a former World Supersport champion, returned to World Superbike in 2010 with Kawasaki after a stint in MotoGP. At the season opener on his home circuit of Phillip Island, Vermeulen was running well in both races before a crash caused the original injury. Vermeulen initially went under the knife to remove torn cartilage.
At the Miller round of WSBK this season, the 28-year-old’s knee was still in a brace as he explained to Motorcycle USA about his earlier knee surgery: “I got a small operation just to take the cartilage out. There’s a couple ligaments that are not in good condition and I didn’t get them fixed yet. It would have just been too long off the bike - it was a minimum of six months.”
Instead Vermeulen planned to have the more extensive ligament operation after his racing career, but it appears the most recent injury is causing reconsidering that course. Though the Kawasaki bike has struggled this season, along with Vermeulen, the Aussie was optimistic that next year’s chances would improve thanks to the all-new ’11 Ninja ZX-10R, which is now in development.
Vermeulen may go under the knife for more extensive surgery after his Race 1 crash at Brno aggravated his already injured knee.
A press announcement from Vermeulen’s Paul Bird Motorsports Kawasaki squad states:
Following the Race 1 crash incident at Brno this weekend, Kawasaki Racing Team rider Chris Vermeulen suffered further damage to his already injured right knee . The original injury was sustained in Philip Island at the first round of the Hannspree World Superbike Championship and although Chris returned to the team at the Assen race in April, his recovery has been very slow due to the severe ligament damage sustained. The latest damage has set back the recovery process and has reopened the question of whether reconstructive surgery is required to enable Chris to regain full use and control of the knee.
As a result Chris will be suspending his race and test activities from the Hannspree World Superbike Championship so that immediate corrective medical treatment can be sought without delay and to help ensure that Chris can return to full fitness in preparation for the 2011 Kawasaki Racing Team program.
We wish Chris well with his recovery and will issue further details when available.
