Marc Marquez withdraws from French and Catalan Grand Prixs after injury in Le Mans sprint race

The Ducati rider has been ruled out of Sunday's race and will miss next weekend's Catalan Grand Prix as well after suffering a broken metatarsal. He has also confirmed that he will undergo shoulder surgery in Madrid to remove a loose screw which has been pressing on his nerve throughout the year - confirming what many suspected about the Spaniard's fitness.

Marquez started the weekend having to fight his way out of Q1, but set a new all-time lap record as he topped the session. He then managed to put his Ducati on the front row beside teammate Francesco Bagnaia in Q2.

In the sprint race, Marquez had a poor start and found himself slipping down to P7 behind Yamaha's Fabio Quartararo and Honda's Joan Mir, he then suffered a massive crash on the penultimate lap at Turn 13, which was arguably the most violent crash of the season so far.

The reigning champion was seen visibly injured as he hobbled away from the crash and then had to be assisted to get back to his motorhome. It is the latest in a string of worrying injuries for the Ducati rider, with many believing he could be close to retirement.

The Spaniard also spoke to the media following the incident, and revealed the ongoing issues with the screw in his shoulder:

"I knew I could crash at any moment. I already had surgery scheduled for after Catalunya, on my right shoulder." He said, "After Jerez, I realised something wasn’t right. We went to see the doctors, and they found that everything was fine, but that the infamous broken screw—the one in the lateral ligament—was in a different position."

"It was a very strange feeling, because at home I felt fine, but when I came here, it prevented me from riding, because it was touching the radial nerve. That’s what causes me to make mistakes, be inconsistent, and have unexpected crashes. [...] The shoulder procedure is simply opening it up and removing that screw. The recovery time should be short."