Johann Zarco has confirmed he sustained a knee injury following his heavy crash during the chaotic Catalan Grand Prix, adding another worrying chapter to one of the most incident-filled races of the MotoGP season.
The Castrol Honda LCR rider was caught in the second major accident of the afternoon after the race had already been restarted following an earlier red flag. Zarco collided with Luca Marini and championship contender Francesco Bagnaia at Turn 1, triggering another stoppage and immediate concern among teams and spectators.
Initial medical checks later confirmed that Zarco suffered ligament damage along with a small fracture near his knee area. Despite the severity of the impact, the Frenchman avoided more serious injuries and remained conscious throughout the incident.
According to reports, Zarco stayed overnight in hospital in Barcelona for further observation and treatment following the crash. The 35-year-old later reassured fans through social media that his condition was stable.
Source: Crash.net
The accident came during a dramatic afternoon at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, where multiple heavy crashes forced race officials to red-flag the Grand Prix twice. Earlier in the race, Alex Marquez was also taken to hospital after colliding with Pedro Acosta’s slowing KTM machine in a separate high-speed incident.
Zarco had entered the weekend in encouraging form after showing competitive pace throughout practice and qualifying. However, the crash abruptly ended his hopes of fighting for a strong result and raised fresh concerns over rider safety at the opening corners of the Barcelona circuit.
While no official recovery timeline has been announced, the focus for Zarco and the LCR Honda squad will now shift toward rehabilitation and assessing his fitness ahead of the next MotoGP round.
