Image: Supplied.

Red Bull Ducati Factory MXGP Team will be without Andrea Bonacorsi for this weekend’s second round of the MXGP World Championship in Spain, as the Italian continues to recover from ongoing soreness following a crash at the season-opener.

The 22-year-old claimed 11th in Saturday’s qualifying race before crashing out of the opening moto while running inside the top 10. He ultimately withdrew from the second race after initially taking the start, bringing an early end to his Argentine weekend.

Ducati Corse has since announced that Bonacorsi will miss the second round: ‘After crashing during the first race of the Argentinian Grand Prix while fighting for a top-five finish, Andrea Bonacorsi was then forced to retire from the second race due to severe pain in his side. Having returned to Italy and undergone tests, the 22-year-old is still recovering and will therefore not ride his Desmo450 MX machine in the next MXGP round, scheduled for this weekend at the new Almonte circuit in Andalusia.’

Beddini Racing Ducati Factory Team has also confirmed that MX2 rider Ferruccio Zanchi will remain sidelined for round two as he continues to recover from a pre-season hand injury.

Simone Mancini – who replaced Zanchi at the season-opener – returns to his EMX250 campaign this weekend, leaving a Desmo250 MX absent from the MX2 grid at the MXGP of Andalucía.

‘Ferruccio Zanchi’s return to MX2 has been postponed,’ the statement continued. ‘Having injured his hand during training in preparation for the Argentinian Grand Prix, he was replaced by Simone Mancini in the Bariloche race. The 19-year-old will return to racing once he is fully recovered, while Mancini will make his debut in Almonte, as planned, in the 250 European Championship with the Desmo250 MX.’