Accidents and injuries in elite MotoGP motorcycle riders

Abstract

Objective

Evaluating incidence, characteristics and risk factors of accidents and injuries in each elite motorcycle racing class (MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3), 2013–2017.

Design

Descriptive epidemiological study.

Setting

MotoGP Medical Team, Dorna Sports SL.

Participants

Competing riders in elite motorcycling racing classes, 2013–2017.

Interventions

Benchmarking incidence, characteristics and risk factors of accidents and injuries in each elite motorcycle racing class, 2013–2017.

Main outcome measures

Association between accident type (by class and year) and fracture, withdrawal from race, need for surgery, injuries (fractures or contusions/wounds) and time riders kept inactive. Circuit and curve, weather conditions, presence and type of fracture, clinical outcome, and time until return to competition. Event outcomes were defined as rider fit/rider unfit after each accident. Racing class, track curves and circuits with the most and fewest accidents, circuit characteristics, speed and deceleration, G-forces, and time race differences between classes.

Results

9092 accidents (mean 1818,4 per year). Most during race and under wet-weather conditions. Class and circuit with most accidents 2013–2017 were Moto3 (3374; 37.11%) and MWC – Marco Simoncelli —with 430.119/9092 accidents resulted in a fracture (1.31%), 83, surgical fractures (70%). Most frequent surgical fractures were upper extremity (clavicular; 29/119; 21%). On average, riders returned to competition after two circuits (1–5 weeks).

Conclusions

Accidents are not uncommon among elite motorcycle riders; incidences of fractures and surgical fractures are low. Factors such as weather conditions and circuit’s characteristics influence the risk of accidents. Further research is necessary to clarify the magnitude of the role each of these factors play.

1. Introduction

Elite motorcycle racing is a popular sport which attracts many spectators worldwide. Accidents in elite classes are common, but their incidence is not well established. Bedolla et al., in a study that incorporated the three US MotoGP races during the 2013 season of the “American Red Bull MotoGP” series, estimated roughly 500–600 accidents per year.¹

Despite the high estimated incidence of high-speed accidents that occur annually, only a small percentage of riders sustain significant injuries. Horner et al. observed overall incidence rates for injury of 1.3% and 1.5%, occurring at Mondelo Park racetrack during the 1983 and 1984 seasons, respectively.²

One of the most important characteristics of Motorcycle MotoGP riders is the high speeds at which they compete, averaging 4 h at speeds up to 344 km/h at each event.¹ For this reason, despite their low incidence, the injuries sustained during these accidents frequently are associated with different patterns of fracture, some of which require surgical repair and/or stabilization.^{3, 4, 5}

Despite the high rate of accidents, the presumed severity of the injuries and popularity of this sport, little is published in the literature about the incidence, characteristics and consequences of these accidents, with most studies merely descriptive and involving one or two large competitions.

This is the first study to retrospectively benchmark the incidence and characteristics of accidents and injuries that have taken place in each circuit over the last five years among MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto 3 riders involved in elite motorcycle racing.

2. Methods

This was a descriptive observational study that incorporated all riders who competed in elite motorcycling racing classes (MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3) over the five seasons from 2013 through 2017. This study was conducted in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki, ensuring high-level confidentiality, in terms of protection of personal data, as required by Spanish Law (LOPD 15/1999).

Data were collected from official MotoGP™ statistics, in collaboration with X.M PhD (Orthopedic surgeon, specialized upper extremity orthopedic surgery and sports medicine; member of the MotoGP Medical Team, Dorna Sports).

Eighteen circuits per year were evaluated for MotoGP between 2013 and 2018, 17 circuits for Moto2 and Moto3 during 2013, and 18 circuits for Moto2 and Moto3 from 2014 to 2018. Accident type was as reported by the rider, Dorna Sports, S.L and official MotoGP race monitors, or video examination.

We examined the association between accident type (by class and year) and the fracture that occurred, withdrawal from the race, need for surgery, injuries sustained and the duration time these injuries kept riders inactive on the circuit.

For each accident type, we recorded the following events: circuit and the curve of the race track where it occurred, weather conditions, type of injury, presence and type of fracture, need for surgery, withdrawal from competition, clinical outcome, and time until return to competition. Event outcomes were defined as whether the rider re-joined the ongoing event: rider fit/rider unfit (practice, qualifying, warm-up, or race) after each accident. For each injured rider, we characterized injuries sustained as fractures or contusions/wounds.

Also analysed were the racing class and circuits with the most and fewest accidents, track curves with the most accidents over these five seasons, characteristics of the circuit, records related to speed and deceleration, G-forces, and time race differences between classes.

3. Results

Epidemiological data were collected at the beginning of each season. Over the five seasons, the mean number of riders per season in the MotoGP class was 23, and they had a mean age of 26,87 years (SD 0,2). Meanwhile, there were 32 riders with a mean age of 23,67 years (SD 0,36) years in Moto2, and 33 riders with a mean age of 18,70 years (0,96 SD) in Moto3. The number of riders and average age in each season are summarized in Table 1.

Table 1.

Number of riders and mean age in each season.

	MOTO 3		MOTO 2		MOTO GP
	Riders	Mean Age	Riders	Mean Age	Riders	Mean Age
2013	32	18,40	32	23,78	24	26,79
2014	33	18,69	35	24,13	23	27,17
2015	34	17,70	30	23,73	25	26,92
2016	33	18,45	30	23,37	21	26,62
2017	31	20,29	33	23,33	23	26,87

Over these five years (2013–2017), there were a total of 9092 accidents, averaging 1818,4 accidents per year. The class with most accidents was Moto3, with 3374 accidents (37.11%), followed by Moto2 with 3156 accidents (34.71%) and MotoGP with 2562 accidents (28.18%) (Fig. 1).

Fig. 1.

Number of accidents by class and season from 2013 through 2017.

The majority of accidents took place during races (n = 5182, 57%), compared to practices, qualifying heats and warm-ups. Related to weather conditions, 4637 accidents took place under wet conditions (4637/9092; 51,0%). With respect to the influence of weather, we noted an increase in the number of accidents under wet weather conditions, such that they contributed to slightly more than half (51%) of the events. These tended to be less serious, however, accounting for disproportionately low percentages of fractures (24%) and surgical fractures (27%), as well as less frequent hospitalization and withdrawal from races. One potential explanation for this is that, even though accidents are more likely to occur under wet weather conditions, riders also may be more conscious of this increased risk, perhaps increasing their attentiveness and/or reducing their speed. Registry data indicate that drivers averaged driving 15 s slower per lap in wet conditions.

Over the five years analysed, the circuit with the largest total number of accidents was MWC – Marco Simoncelli — with 430 accidents from 2013 through 2017, and the circuit with the least accidents in the same period of time was Termas del Río Hondo, with 147. Over the same period of time, the circuit with the greatest number of accidents in one season was MWC-Marco Simoncelli, with 140 accidents in 2017, while the circuit with the fewest annual accidents per circuit during this same period of time was Laguna Seca, with 11 (2013). Events y season are summarized in Table 2.

Table 2.

Events by season.

Year	Total Accidents/Year	Circuit with the most accidents (Circuit Name – Number of accidents)	Circuit with least accidents (Circuit Name – Number of accidents)	Total fractures per year	Ratio Fractures/Accidents (%)	Ratio Surgical Fractures/Fractures (%)
2017	1126	MWC-Marco Simoncelli – 140	Autodrómo de Mugello - 28	19	19/1126 (1,69%)	15/19 (78,95%)
2016	1847	Phillip Island - 90	Autódromo de Mugello - 34	25	25/1847 (1,35%)	16/25 (64%)
2015	1921	Silverstone - 79	Termas del Río Hondo - 25	19	19/1921 (0,99%)	14/19 (73,69%)
2014	2073	MWC – Marco Simoncelli - 109	Autódromo de Mugello - 33	19	19/2073 (0,92%)	12/19 (63,16%)
2013	1731	Le Mans - 68	Laguna Seca - 11	37	37/1731 (2,14%)	26/37 (70,27%)
TOTAL (2013–2017)	9092	MWC – Marco Simoncelli - 430	Termas del Río Hondo - 147	119	83/119 (1.31%)	83/119 (70%)

As shown in Fig. 2(A), in 2013 and 2014, the curve on the track where the most accidents occurred was turn 10 (La Caixa) of the GP Cataluña (Spain), with 28 and 22 accidents, respectively; in 2015, it was curve 10 (Tramonto) of the GP TIM Di San Marino e Riviera di Rimini, with 20; in 2016, curve 4 of the Michelin Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix, with 32; and, in 2017, curve 6 of the GP Tribul Mastercard di San Marino e Riviera di Rimini, with 31 (Fig. 2(B)).

Fig. 2.

(A) GP Monster Energy Catalunya, (blue circle) curve 10, the curve with most accidents in the 2013 and 2014 seasons. (B) GP Tim Di San Marino e Riviera Di Rimini or Marco Simoncelli circuit, (yellow box) curve 10, the curve with most accidents in 2015; and curve 6 (green box), the curve with the most accidents in 2017.

One consequence of accidents was a fracture in 119 of 9092 instances, for an incidence of 1.31%, with 83 of these 119 (70%) requiring surgery.

The most frequent fractures for which surgery was indicated were clavicular fractures, accounting for 29 of the 119 total fractures (24,4%), followed by distal radial fractures (n = 16, 13,4%), and ankle fractures (n = 11, 9,2%). Meanwhile, the least frequent fractures were patellar and talar fractures, with one fracture each, representing 0,84% of the total. Table 3 shows the Fracture incidence over the 5 seasons (2013–2017).

Table 3.

Fracture incidence over the 5 seasons (2013–2017).

Fracture type	Fracture type/total fractures (%)
Clavicle	29/119 (24,37%)
Distal radius	21/119 (17,65%)
Ankle	11/119 (9,24%)
MTC	10/119 (8,40%)
Phalanx	10/119 (8,40%)
MTT	10/119 (8,40%)
Vertebral	9/119 (7,56%)
Femur	8/119 (6,72%)
Scaphoid	4/119 (3,36%)
Proximal humerus	3/119 (2,52%)
Ulna	2/119 (1,68%)
Talar	1/119 (0,84%)
Patella	1/119 (0,84%)

Nineteen dislocations took place during this period of time, with glenohumeral dislocations most frequent, accounting for 8/19 (42,1%) of all dislocations. The most common surgical procedure for clavicular fractures was open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) with eight hole clavicular plates, while ORIF with distal radius plates was the most commonly used technique in cases of distal radial fracture.

Describing the percentages of fractures deemed surgical fractures (requiring surgery), by class, the highest ratio of surgical/total fractures was among Moto3 riders, with 41 surgical fractures out of a total of 51 fractures (80,4%). Meanwhile, 39 fractures were registered in Moto2, among which 27 were considered surgical (69,2%), and 29 were registered in MotoGP, of which 15 were labelled surgical (51,7%) (Fig. 3).

Fig. 3.

Percentage of fractures requiring surgery, by class, over the five seasons from 2013 through 2017.

One fatal event was registered, which took place in turn 12, at the GP Monster Energy Catalunya, during the 2016 season.

During these five seasons, the circuit with the most fractures was MWC-Marco Simoncelli, with 37 fractures; it also was the circuit with the most surgical fractures (26). The circuit with the fewest fractures was Termas del Río Hondo, with three fractures, similarly, the circuit with the least surgical fractures (1).

The season with the most accidents was 2017, with 1126, while the most fractures occurred in 2013 (n = 37). The year with the most surgical fractures was 2017, with 15, among the 19 total fractures that year (78,9%).

In the present study, we also noted inter-class differences in the closeness of racing times among riders, which could explain the higher incidence of accidents in Moto 3. Over these five seasons, the mean time between the 1st and the 10th rider at the end of the race was 7,18 s (SD 5,07) for Moto 3 comparing to 18,69 s (SD 3,87) for Moto 2 and 30,32 s (SD 16,13) for Moto GP. This indicates a mean difference, comparing MotoGP and Moto3 riders, of 23,14 s between the 1st and 10th rider. Such clustering might explain not only the greater number of accidents, but also the larger number of accidents that involved more than one rider.

Related to returning to competition, on average, riders returned to competition after two circuits of inactivity, spanning a maximum of five weeks and a minimum of one week. After accidents that did not cause a fracture, riders generally returned to competition immediately.

4. Discussion

In the present study, we observed that accidents in motorcycling competition are more frequent than previously reported.

Related to high speeds and the severity of injuries that result from such speed, we obtained results similar to those published by Bedolla et al. over three US MotoGP races.¹ We observed how riders spent an average of roughly 3 h at an average speed of 348 km/h, which emphasizes the risk of severe injury. Moreover, accidents involving and injuring more than one rider are frequent.^6,7

One important question to answer is when accidents are most frequent: during practice, in qualifying heats, or during races. Contrary to what has been previously reported by Tomida et al.,⁸ in our series, most accidents took place during races. One potential explanation for this is that riders typically risk more during races than qualifying heats, as there is more at stake. Other issues relate to the fatigue and tire wear that are more pronounced during races, which tend to be considerably longer than qualifying heats. It is also important to emphasize that, in the study published by Tomida et al., there was a heterogeneous group of subjects (road, motocross and trail bike riders), including 117 elite motorcycle racers.⁸

Other important factors that appear to contribute to the risk of accidents include weather conditions and circuit-specific characteristics, like G-force exposure, curve characteristics, and excessive deceleration.

With respect to the influence of weather, we noted an increase in the number of accidents under wet weather conditions, such that they contributed to slightly more than half of the events. These tended to be less serious, however, accounting for disproportionately low percentages of fractures and surgical fractures, as well as less frequent hospitalization and withdrawal from races. One potential explanation for this is that, even though accidents are more likely to occur under wet weather conditions, riders also may be more conscious of this increased risk, perhaps increasing their attentiveness and/or reducing their speed. Registry data indicate that drivers averaged driving 15 s slower per lap in wet conditions.

The circuit with the most accidents overall, both across five seasons and in a single season, was the MWC-Marco Simoncelli circuit. This may be related to this circuit requiring the highest G-force exposure. G-force is a measure of acceleration, based on the acceleration that Earth’s gravity exerts on any object. We observed that, the greater the G-force, the more accidents were registered, and the stronger the impact. Accidents in this circuit resulted in an impact of 29.9G when riders struck the ground. This also may be why this circuit also had the largest number of fractures.

We emphasize that, in two of the five seasons studied, the track curve with most accidents was turn 10 on the GP Aperol Catalunya circuit (renamed GP Monster Energy Catalunya more recently). In fact, 95 of the 253 accidents (37,5%) that occurred on the GP Monster Energy Catalunya circuit over those five seasons occurred on curve 10. One particular characteristic of this curve is the degree of deceleration that is required. On this curve, riders reduce their speed by an average of roughly 200 km/h. This could be exacerbated in races, versus practices and time trials, by the increased brake degradation that generally occurs during races because of their increased length.

Despite accidents occurring at racing speeds among elite motorcycle racers, these appear to result in a low rate of severe injuries. In our study sample, we identified few fractures, relative to the total number of accidents, with a fracture to accident ratio of just 1%. There are several potential explanations for this. To begin with, professional racers generally have much superior protective gear than amateur riders, including fitted carbon-fibre full-face helmets, full protective armour, back braces, boots, gloves, and a CO₂ powered self-inflating shoulder, chest, and neck protector that is deployed when it detects the rider falling. Professional riders also are highly-trained athletes who have considerable experience crashing at high speeds.^{9, 10, 11}

On the other hand, the high speeds might explain why a higher percentage (70%) of their fractures required surgical repair. On the other hand, surgical treatment, depending on the type of fracture, can lead to faster recovery and earlier mobilization.

Analysing by racing class, Moto3 riders were in more accidents and sustained more fractures and fractures requiring surgery than riders in either of the other two classes. We also found that a greater number of Moto3 riders withdrew from the race, were hospitalized, and underwent surgery. That all this occurs has previously been attributed to the driver’s age, desire to win, and level of experience.

Related to the body area involved in these injuries, it is well-known that upper-extremity injuries are common in motorcycle accidents. Consistent with what has previously been reported,^1,8 in the present study, upper-extremity injuries were the most common, and clavicular fractures the most frequent among them. Roughly one in five fractures that we identified in our sample was clavicular, while patellar and talar fractures were the least common, with only a single case each. The most convincing explanation for this is that fractures in motorcycle riders generally occur as a result of them falling onto their shoulder. This results in large forces suddenly inflicted upon the clavicle, which is the only loadbearing bone that stabilizes the glenohumeral joint.^{12, 13, 14, 15}

The average time until the return to competition in these elite riders, after fracture, was two circuits, so that they all were back riding competitively within one to five weeks. This is a shorter recovery time than that of an amateur motorcyclist, because of the elite rider’s immediate need to return to competition¹. This prompt recovery is likely facilitated by surgery, intensive physiotherapy, and the immediate need to return to competition.

To our knowledge, this is the first study published to date which describes as never before the incidence of accidents among elite motorcycle riders (analysing by racing class) and the relative incidence of fractures and surgical fractures caused by such accidents, during the years 2013 through 2017. The risk factors associated with the previously mentioned accidents, including weather conditions, those specific to each circuit, and to the moment in which they took place (during practice, in qualifying heats, or during races) are thoroughly described, relating them to the severity and to the body area involved in these injuries. We consider the information this study provides crucial to identify the risk factors that lead to a greater number of accidents, fractures, surgical fractures, hospitalization, withdrawal from competition and the average time until the return to competition in these elite riders, after fracture, in order to act accordingly.

The main limitation of our study is that it is observational, retrospective and descriptive, rather than prospective and inferential.

5. Conclusions

Accidents are not uncommon among elite motorcycle riders, but the relative incidences of fractures and fractures that require surgery are low. Various factors influence the risk of accidents, including weather conditions and other factors characteristic of the different circuits. Further research is necessary to clarify the magnitude of the role each of these factors play.

Funding

The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Confidentiality

The authors declare that patient confidentiality was maintained throughout the duration of this study and afterwards.

Declaration of competing interest

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.