News 6 Jun 2022

Surgery for Hampshire following opening moto crash at Hangtown

Return date TBC for Husqvarna 250MX contender.

Image: Octopi Media.

RJ Hampshire has undergone surgery to keep his lung from collapsing after he landed on a trackside stake in a fall during the opening 250MX moto at round two of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship at Hangtown.

The Rockstar Energy Husqvarna rider entered the second round looking to build on his fourth overall at Fox Raceway, but the crash on lap 11 brought a premature end to his charge.

In a gutsy display, Hampshire remounted and completed the opening moto in P16 before sitting out the second moto altogether due to the injuries sustained. By his own account repercussions of the fall were more serious than he initially believed.

“Had a crash the first moto with a few laps to go, I was hurting but didn’t think it was too bad,” Hampshire shared. “Turns out I was wrong. I landed on one of those stakes on the side of the track and it went under my armpit, through my rib cage and cut the top of my right lung.

“I had surgery Saturday once I got to the hospital. They cleaned the cut up and placed a chest tube in to keep my lung from collapsing. I had to spend a couple nights in the hospital because of the tube but looks like I’ll be out of here soon. It sounds gnarly but the good news is that it won’t take long to heal up! Be back soon.”

It was a challenging round of 250MX for the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing team, as Jalek Swoll’s event also ended prematurely with a first-lap crash into moto two. He was ninth in the opening moto after running strong in the early laps, as teammate Stilez Robertson finished ninth overall at Hangtown.

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