Following the crash in Malaysia, Ben Spies has successfully undergone surgery on the 23rd of October for the torn ligament in his right shoulder.
Straight the press release “The procedure consisted of the reconstruction of the Coracoclavicular Ligaments torn in the crash and a reduction of a separated Acrimioclavicular joint, aided by a Twin Tightrope device, which is a suture based system”. The doctors removed a titanium plate that was put in 10-12 years ago, and used the ‘buttonhole’ method using the same screw holes, said to cycleworld.com by Spies’ mother. The doctors also realized that the clavicle was very loose, and hence cadavar tissue was placed to replace and reinforce the Coracoclavicular Ligaments that were torn.
The surgery was successful, Spies will make a full recovery although he will need to remain in a sling for up to 10-12 weeks. Yamaha Factory will field only one rider in Australia and will announce the replacement rider for the final round in Valencia after the Phillip Island race.
Ben Spies ends his stint with Yamaha Factory Racing and will move to Pramac Ducati Racing next season. The long recovery period will unfortunately make Spies miss out on pre season testing.