MOTORSPORT – If it is up to Michael van der Mark himself, he will start on Friday morning at the first free practice at the World Superbikes World Championship at the TT Circuit in Assen. The recovery of the only permanent Dutch World Cup driver is going well. However, he will first have to undergo a medical examination on Thursday.
More than five weeks ago, Van der Mark broke his tibia and fibula when he fell from his mountain bike. Twelve days later he was operated on. As a result, the winter test and the first race weekend of the World Superbikes World Championship in Aragon, Spain, had to be missed. But for Assen he now seems to be fit in time.
“After the forced break of a few weeks, I feel ready to return to my home race in Assen,” Van der Mark said on his Facebook page. “Of course it depends on the last medical examination on Thursday, but I am confident that I can get back on my BMW next weekend. The recovery process after the surgery has gone very well. I have also had several treatments that have helped my recovery accelerated.”
However, the driver tempers expectations. “Of course I don’t expect to be at the front in Assen. I know it will be a challenge because I haven’t ridden my bike since the end of last year. I also missed all the tests in the spring, so I don’t know all developments that have been made over the winter and I need to understand them first before I can take advantage of them I feel very good but I am not 100 percent fit so for me the most important thing is that I get back into action without me focus on results. Then we move forward step by step.”