Arnaud Tonus to return to racing at Valkenswaard
Monday 18 March: Tonus has received the all-clear to prepare for the GP of the Netherlands at Easter after it was discovered that the injuries sustained in Qatar are not as bad as initially feared.
The Team CLS MX2 Kawasaki Monster Energy Pro Circuit rider was forced
to retire from the MX2 moto at the opening GP in Qatar with pain in his
right leg and missed the second GP of the season in Thailand last
weekend. Medical investigations in Switzerland and Marseille have
revealed that the initial diagnosis, which indicated that he had
suffered a hairline crack to the right tibia he had broken at the end of
2012 when he landed heavily on the landing of a triple jump in Qatar,
was incorrect. Indeed his doctor back home in Switzerland and a French
leg specialist who works for the Marseille football club confirmed that
nothing was broken!
Arnaud has to rest for a few more days before he can resume training on
his KX250F, but the Swiss talent is already able to start physical
training in preparation for his comeback in Holland. Although he will be
unable to contest the opening rounds of the French MX1 Elite series,
Arnaud will attend the first event in Sommières as a spectator and will
be available for autograph sessions with the fans. He will also support
Jordan Lacan, who had just been confirmed to ride a 450 CLS Kawasaki;
already part of the team for the closing rounds of last season's
European and World Championships, the French teenager is already testing
his new 450 alongside Bruno Losito, his sporting coach. Jordan will
also be involved with CLS Kawasaki in the 250 European series, and will
be one of the favourites for the title.
Arnaud Tonus: "I was relieved when the doctors confirmed that nothing
was broken, even if I still have pain in my leg. In fact I had a strong
impact on my tibia when I landed from a big jump in Qatar, and that’s
why it was
so painful. Everyday I feel that it’s coming better and I
think that within a few days I will be back on my bike; at the moment I
can go cycling and do some other sporting activities to stay in good
shape. I will go to Germany tomorrow to adapt my Ortema knee brace to my
leg, and then I will visit the opening round of the French series in
Sommières to support the team.”
Jean Jacques Luisetti: "After the initial diagnosis in Qatar we asked
Arnaud to fly back to Europe for more examinations, and now we have
confirmation that he has not suffered a serious injury. What was
supposed to be a crack in his leg is just a sequel of his former
fracture; it’s still painful and that’s why he has to rest for a few
more days, but next week he will be back on his bike. To respect our
contract with the team partners we had to find another rider for the
French MX1 Elite, and we are pleased to confirm that Jordan Lacan, who
raced some events with us last year, has been selected; I’d like to
thanks personally team HDI, who agreed to release Jordan, and all our
partners for their support. This weekend Arnaud will come in Sommières
as a spectator, and then he will be able to reassume riding in
preparation for the GP of the Netherlands.”
Kawasaki Racing image