McGUINNESS ‘INJURY WON’T STOP ME’
Road race hero remains hopeful of TT ride despite re-fracturing leg
Amonth ago, Isle of Man TT legend John McGuinness had looked certain to be heading down Bray Hill on the Norton, but now he’s battling to be fit in time after a setback with the leg injury he has spent the last year recovering from. Having taken his first steps at the official TT press launch on the Isle of Man after the removal of his cage, a buoyant McGuinness couldn’t wait to get back on two wheels having lined up rides with Norton, Michael Dunlop Racing, KMR Kawasaki and Mugen. However, having been in pain with his leg after a family holiday, the 23-times TT winner has been back to the hospital. McGuinness explained: “The leg has cracked on the original fracture. When they put the cage on, I wasn’t growing bone. I was crushing that original fracture together and that’s been pushed together and held for ten months. “The surgeons never worry about that. All they are concerned about is the top bit of bone they are regenerating, where they’ve re-broken the leg at the top and then you grow it back by stretching it 1mm per day.
“I had an MRI scan, CT scan, all of that on the original fracture in November and they said it was ok. I came out of the frame, did a bit of light walking and then got the go ahead to go fully weight bearing, But for some reason after six days on holiday the original fracture cracked. It’s not broken, just a hairline crack on the front. The surgeon said he doesn’t understand why and reckons he’s only seen this happen twice in 16 years! “I’ve had a plate put in the front of the bone over the crack. They said it’d be six weeks before I could walk on it again so it’s a bit touch and go for racing at the TT. ” Those six weeks take us to a week before TT practice (the operation was done two weeks ago), and while that means it’s highly unlikely McGuinness will race at the TT he hasn’t ruled it out. He said: “There’s no hope of me riding at the North West, but I’d love to do something at the TT. We’ll see. In my head it’s not out of the question.
“I don’t want to hit the bottom of Bray Hill at 180mph and have my leg snap off. That’s no good for anybody! I haven’t got a magic wand. If I did, trust me I’d have already used it by now.” McGuinness is still fighting hard to be fit and insists that this is not the end of his TT dreams.
“I’ve been in some shit places over the last ten months, struggled and had a lot of pain, so when I started walking again it felt mega. Everything was getting back on track, there was even plans to do some testing ahead of the North West and TT. I felt great, so this is like having the rug pulled from underneath me, like getting your hands in your bird’s knickers and not getting any further! You’re nearly there, you just didn’t get the final bit.
“The Norton factory is 100% behind me with all this. I also spoke to Michael Dunlop and he was the first person to say ‘look mate, go get yourself fit!’ “Michael has said if I can’t ride his 600 at the TT, the bike will still be there if I want to ride it somewhere else like the Ulster Grand Prix later this year. Ryan Farquhar has said the same.
“Even if I don’t ride this year I will be back, no doubt about it. There’s the Classic TT and a few other meetings I’m looking at. The Norton deal is for more than one year, too, so the time will come to ride it. I might just have to be patient for now.
“I have said all along that I wasn’t going to let an injury like this finish me. When I retire I want it to be on my terms. I want there to be a day where I get on a race bike and think ‘yep, that’s enough’, but right now I’m just itching to get back on one!” ‘If I had a magic wand I’d have used it’