KNEED FOR SPEED
Radical repair has Reardon on comeback trail
A LIGAMENT transplant will allow Dan Reardon to mount a full-scale assault on his sixth Australian Supercross Championship.
The 30-year-old went down the path of alternative surgery after a nasty crash during Round 6 of the national motocross series last month in Nowra, NSW.
Reardon “destroyed” the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee but refused to consider traditional surgery as it would have ruled him out of the supercross season, which begins on September 17.
“It was either not to have surgery and go without an ACL, which is possible in our sport, or go a different route of surgery, which is what I did,” Reardon said.
“I actually used a donor ligament, from a car crash victim or something like that. The recovery process is a lot quicker, surgery is still the same and that’s what I am dealing with right now.”
Reardon concedes his knee simply won’t be 100 per cent by the series opener at Jimboomba.
He’s already walking, cycling and swimming. From Monday, he will start riding for the first time since surgery, at either of his private tracks at Pimpama and Capalaba.
“I’m definitely pushing the boundaries,” said Reardon, from Maudsland.
“I’ll spend a lot of time there (at the tracks) over the next four weeks – actually, throughout the whole season – but yeah, the next four weeks will be important for me to make sure things are good and that we’re strong and the bike is well.”
Reardon hailed last year’s title as his favourite after emerging from a three-year retirement in which he rode just twice.
“No team, no sponsor, nobody really wanted me. They didn’t believe things could go the way that they did,” he said.
“I go into the season with a little bit of weight on my shoulders and obviously this recent injury doesn’t make things the easiest, but nevertheless I’ll be there and we’re in a good position to take this title out again.”
Making the Yamaha racer’s ambitions even tougher is the anticipation of a strong field but he declared he would be his own biggest rival.
The six-round series will come to a climax with a double-header at the AUS-X Open at Sydney Olympic Park, where multiple world supercross champions Chad Reed (Australia) and Ryan Villopoto (US) will make celebrity appearances.
Reardon acknowledged a wider influx of Americans would make competition stiff.
“I’ve beat those guys before and there’s no reason why I can’t do it again,” he said.
“At the end of the day they’re coming to my home soil.
“We’ll be ready and we’ll put on a fierce battle anyway.”