MotoMatters.com | Kropotkin Thinks

The tragic accident which came so close to crippling Regis Laconi at Kyalami generated a huge wave of sympathy. The Frenchman had a huge crash on his very first lap during World Superbike practice at the South African track, was knocked out and cracked his C3 and C5 vertebrae. Only surgery to insert a plate to fix the vertebrae in place prevented further injury to Laconi, and after a long and grueling rehabilitation period the Frenchman is almost back to full fitness.

To celebrate his return to rude health, Laconi will take to the track aboard his #55 DFX Ducati, and do three laps of honor at the Magny-Cours circuit at 11:15 am local time, 45 minutes before the first World Superbike race is due to start. The ceremony is meant as a gesture of thanks for the support his fans and friends inside and outside the World Superbike paddock have shown the Frenchman, and also as a sign that Laconi is determined to make his way back into racing. 

Excellent news from South Africa, where Regis Laconi is recovering in Sunninghill Hospital after the horrific crash at Kyalami, which saw him fracture to vertebrae in his neck. The Frenchman's DFX Corse team issued a press release on Sunday saying that Laconi is making remarkable progress in his recovery, and has even walked without assistance during his physical therapy sessions.

The doctors are now optimistic that Laconi will be able to return to his native France very soon, and Laconi is scheduled to fly straight to his home in Aix en Provence on Tuesday, June 2nd. The doctors feel that Laconi will no longer need to stay in a specialist clinic for his recovery, as originally planned, but will be able to recover at home instead. The Frenchman still has a long way to go before he is back to full fitness, and will still need several weeks of absolute rest for the remains of the intercranial hematoma to disperse.

Regis Laconi's condition continues to improve, as he recovers from the surgery required after his horrific crash at Kyalami. The Frenchman is awake again after surgery, and has already exchanged a few words with the medical staff at the Sunninghill Hospital in Johannesburg, where he is undergoing treatment. More importantly, Laconi is moving all of his limbs independently, confounding earlier reports that the Frenchman had shown signs of paralysis in his left leg.

The reports of Laconi's recovery was also confirmed by Ducati boss Davide Tardozzi. In a post on Ducati's blog, the Italian refuted earlier reports of Laconi's paralysis. "I spoke this morning to his technical chief who has remained in Johannesburg to support his rider and fortunately the rumours that have spread in the press about Regis' loss of mobility in his left leg are wholly untrue. Regis is a wonderful man who has always given 110%," Tardozzi wrote.

In defense of the press, the reports were more than rumors. MotoGPMatters.com received confirmation from three independent sources that Laconi had signs of paralysis. Of course, the problem is that all of those sources came from inside the World Superbike paddock, and as anyone who has ever had the privilege of spending any time there will be aware, that paddock is a like a miniature Italian village, where everyone knows everyone, and what's more, where everyone gossips with everyone. Try as we might, it is not always easy to distinguish gossip from distortion from fact.

If Regis Laconi's recovery continues as it is, the Frenchman is due to be flown back to France for further treatment in a specialist clinic in France. Once again, we send our best wishes to Regis Laconi, and wish him a speedy and full recovery.

Regis Laconi's condition continues to improve. Since his horrific crash at Kyalami's Mineshaft turn on his very first lap out of the pits, Laconi has been in Johannesburg's Sunninghill Hospital, where he has been kept under the watchful eye of the medical specialists there. At first, the Frenchman was kept in a medically-induced coma, but he was brought out of the coma on Sunday morning to be assessed before surgery to fix the cracked vertebrae he suffered in his neck in the crash. Laconi responded well to being awakened from the coma, even cracking jokes about the state he found himself in.

With the signs boding well for surgery, Laconi underwent an operation to fix a plate in his neck to stabilize the fractured vertebrae. The operation was lengthy and difficult, but afterwards, Dr. Maurizio Zorio, the surgeon who performed the procedure pronounced the surgery a success, and that Regis Laconi would not require any further intervention. Laconi was then moved to the intensive care unit to recuperate from the operation.

Though the surgery was said to have gone without complications, Laconi may yet be left with a problem. GPOne.com is reporting that according to Laconi's friend and lawyer Paul-Louis Coulignon, there is some paralysis in Laconi's left leg. It is too early to say whether this is permanent or just temporary, this will only become clear in the course of time.

Laconi now begins the long process of rehabilitation. The Frenchman is due to remain in South Africa until the end of the month, after which he will be flown back to Paris to continue his recovery in a specialist clinic there.

Laconi is a deeply charismatic figure in the World Superbike paddock, the kind of person who commands a presence wherever he goes. We wish him a speedy and full recovery, and hope to see him back in the paddock very soon.