{"id":869,"date":"2026-08-18T07:35:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T10:35:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/?p=869"},"modified":"2026-08-18T07:46:58","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T10:46:58","slug":"aleix-espargaro-undergoes-new-surgery-and-sets-timeline-for-track-return","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/motogp\/aleix-espargaro-undergoes-new-surgery-and-sets-timeline-for-track-return\/","title":{"rendered":"Aleix Espargar\u00f3 undergoes new surgery and sets timeline for track return"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Aleix Espargar\u00f3 is closing in on a return to track duties with Honda in MotoGP. The test driver for the Japanese manufacturer underwent surgery to remove plates and screws placed in his back following a major crash in April, setting his sights on a return to testing activities in September.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Granollers native fractured four vertebrae during a private test session at Sepang, Malaysia, in April. Espargar\u00f3 described the incident as the worst crash of his career, which also ruled out planned wild-card race appearances earlier this season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Espargar\u00f3 has not competed in an official MotoGP race since the 2025 season finale in Valencia. However, his physical recovery has progressed rapidly. Following the successful removal of the surgical hardware, the Spaniard shared an update on social media emphasizing his physical progress.<\/p>\n\n\n<div style=\"max-width:540px;width:100%\" class=\"mx-auto wp-block-fortytwo-instagram\">\n    <iframe\n        src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DcJUMBZjeHm\/embed\/captioned\/\"\n        title=\"Instagram post\"\n        data-42-instagram-embed\n        height=\"600\"\n        scrolling=\"no\"\n        loading=\"lazy\"\n        style=\"display:block;border:0;width:100%;min-height:480px\"\n    ><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;Pit stop for surgery to remove the plates and screws put in my back four months ago. A record recovery and now the countdown has begun to get back on the Honda in September! Can&#8217;t wait to twist the throttle again! Let&#8217;s go!&#8221; he wrote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Espargar\u00f3 is expected to resume test duties next month during a critical development phase for Honda&#8217;s 2027 prototype. During his absence, fellow test driver and former MotoGP racer Takaaki Nakagami took on an expanded workload to maintain the testing schedule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 2026 MotoGP season continues August 28\u201330 with the Aragon Grand Prix at MotorLand Arag\u00f3n, marking Round 13 of the World Championship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What injury did Aleix Espargar\u00f3 suffer in April 2026?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Espargar\u00f3 fractured <strong>four vertebrae<\/strong> during a private MotoGP test session at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is Aleix Espargar\u00f3&#8217;s current role in MotoGP?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Following his retirement from full-time racing at the end of 2024, Espargar\u00f3 serves as an official <strong>factory test driver for Honda<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">When is Aleix Espargar\u00f3 scheduled to return to testing?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Espargar\u00f3 is targeted to return to testing duties for Honda in <strong>September 2026<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Spaniard removed plates and screws placed in his back following a severe crash in Sepang and has begun the process to resume testing Honda&#8217;s prototype in September.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1010380103,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"42wp_featured_image_caption":"Aleix Espargar\u00f3","42wp_featured_image_credits":"Honda","42wp_featured_video":"","42wp_featured_image_hidden":false,"42wp_authors_list":[],"footnotes":"","42wp_breaking_news":false},"categories":[38],"tags":[240,35,32],"42wp_author":[140],"class_list":["post-869","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-motogp","tag-aleix-espargaro","tag-honda","tag-motogp","42wp_author-kaio-esteves"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/869","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=869"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/869\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":870,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/869\/revisions\/870"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1010380103"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=869"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=869"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=869"},{"taxonomy":"42wp_author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grandepremio.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/42wp_author?post=869"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}