‘Metacarpal fracture' for Aleix Espargaro in Assen Sprint | Savadori suffers back fractures

Already sore after being stretchered away from a nasty fall on Friday, Aleix Espargaro lost control of his RS-GP through the fearsome penultimate corner on the last lap of Saturday’s Assen MotoGP Sprint race.

The Aprilia rider, traditionally strong through that turn, appeared to be lining up a pass on fifth place Fabio di Giannantonio for the following chicane when disaster struck.

Lowsiding onto the ground, the Spaniard then barrel-rolled heavily through the gravel trap before coming to a rest.

The 34-year-old, who will retire at the end of this season, was seen nursing his right hand as marshals helped him to walk away.

Aprilia reported that initial checks suggested both Espargaro and wild-card Lorenzo Savadori, who crashed out earlier in the race, “did not suffer any serious symptoms.

“They are undergoing a clinical/instrumental evaluation by the Aprilia Medical Team and the Circuit Medical Center.

“Further information will be available as soon as possible.”

A later update then announced that "both Savadori and Espargaro are going to the hospital in Assen to undergo further medical checks."

Those checks revealed a fracture for Espargaro, but it is still possible that he will take part in the grand prix:

"Espargaro underwent an x-ray of the right hand that showed a simple fracture at the metacarpal 5 confirmed by the CT scan. He will undergo a medical check tomorrow before the warm up."

Earlier in the day, Espargaro had been lucky not to fall when Marc Marquez lunged inside him and crashed at the fast Turn 7 in qualifying.

Aprilia's final update on Saturday evening was for Savadori, who fell at Turn 8 on lap 5 of the Sprint and suffered the most serious injuries:

"Savadori underwent a further clinical and instrumental examination that showed multiple fractures of the transverse processes in [the] lumbar tract of the spine. Savadori is unfit for the race."