Florian Alt suffered serious injuries to his right hand in a high-speed crash just under a week ago at the TT Circuit Assen. The defending Honda champion in the IDM Superbike series is receiving medical treatment every two days. Despite his hospital visits, he is even speculating that he might be able to return to racing next weekend at the Nürburgring.
It happened on Sunday, right in the first lap of Race 1. “I was at 30 percent throttle in the turn. Suddenly, the tire lost all grip. I couldn’t react in time,” Alt describes the incident. The HRP team diagnosed a flat tire. Alt was struck full force by his motorcycle during the crash and suffered deep lacerations on the back of his hand and on his little finger. A tendon was exposed. The force of the impact even broke the plastic caps on his glove—but no bones were broken.
The team left immediately after the accident, and Alt was treated at the hospital in Gummersbach at 8:00 a.m. on Monday; he now goes to the clinic every two days for wound care. “I was incredibly lucky,” Alt realizes, and he makes a point of saying, “that I was wearing the best protective gear. The airbag deployed in my Schwabenleder suit, and the entire electronic system was completely destroyed. I was told they’ve never seen a suit in such bad shape there before. But honestly: I didn’t get a single bruise.” The gloves also did their job. “They absorbed a massive amount of impact. I’ve already spoken with Alpinestars, and they’re sending me four models in different sizes. Just in case I end up riding again next weekend,” Alt says.
The 28-year-old Honda rider isn’t ruling out the possibility. At the moment, he’s actually quite confident about it. The doctor will have the final say midweek. Four Superbike races remain on the schedule—two at the Nürburgring and two at the big IDM finale in Hockenheim. Following Alt’s retirement in Assen, Ukrainian rider Ilya Mikhalchik (BMW) leads the overall standings with 58 points, ahead of the injured German. “The championship is as good as lost for us,” Alt admits, “but I don’t want to just give up. We’ve always given it our all, and I want to keep doing that until the very end.”
