Press Release

CAS Honda: Improvements and Setbacks for Mackenzie in Portugal

12th May 2009 – Round five of the FIM World MX1 Championship – Agueda, Portugal


CAS Honda's Billy Mackenzie suffered another blow to his 2009 World Championship campaign, as an unlucky free practice crash ruled him out of this weekend's injury-filled Motocross Grand Prix of Portugal, just three laps into the first moto.


Mackenzie made a strong start to the race weekend, where the hard work that both he and the team have put in over recent weeks was evident, as he eased around the Agueda track with great speed. The 25-year-old Scottish rider began to regain some of the confidence  he has been struggling to find in recent weeks, and was feeling happy with the vast improvement in the set-up of his CRF450R.


However, during Saturday's second free practice, a crash at the top end of the circuit, which has caught out many of the Grand Prix racers this weekend, left Mackenzie with a badly bruised right hand. The reigning British Champion fought through the pain barrier to finish the qualifying race in 15th position, and received treatment on the injured area as it worsened during the evening.


This morning it was evident that the Mackenzie was in a lot of discomfort, and he was given pain-relieving injections from the track doctor in his severely swollen hand, which enabled him to go out on track.


In the opening race Mackenzie gated well, but a low qualifying position meant that he was forced wide and had to battle to keep his machine in 14th place into the second turn. The CAS Honda pilot began making progress, but as the pain relief wore off, he jarred his injured hand while trying to grip onto his machine and was unable to continue the race just three laps into the moto.


After a visit to the local hospital, it has been confirmed that Mackenzie has severely bruised his hand with no further damage, and he will return back to England tonight for intense physiotherapy during this week.


Billy Mackenzie #211

"We came here feeling strong, and we've made massive improvements with the bike in recent weeks. In fact, the bike feels awesome and I was really enjoying my time out there throughout practice. The track this weekend has caught many people out and I was unlucky to have a crash at the top section of the circuit. I caught my hand on the bars, but at first it didn't seem too bad. This morning the bruising had really come out, and we spent a lot of time icing it to reduce the swelling. I went to the circuit doctor and had a pain relief injection before warm-up, then another before the race, but it wore off about three laps in and I was unable to control the bike safely. I had no option other to pull in, and I'm so frustrated because we just haven't had any luck recently. I'm heading back to England tonight, and I'll have treatment on the area tomorrow. We need to remain positive and hope that everything comes together soon, because the bike is working good and I feel good, but we just need some luck on our side."


Neil Prince: CAS Honda Team Manager

"It's been a frustrating weekend here for us at CAS Honda. We've made dramatic steps forward with the bike setting, and the team has been working incredibly hard in recent weeks, although this is not reflected in our results. Billy really noticed the machine's improvement throughout practice, but his crash in the second session left him with a very painful hand. There has been many big crashes and injuries this weekend, so I guess we are a little  lucky that it isn't more serious than severe bruising. Billy made a good start to the race, and we saw glimpses of the great performances he is capable of during his time out on track, but having an injury to his throttle hand meant that he couldn't grip the bars properly. Unfortunately the pain relief wore off early on into the race, and it was obvious that he was unable to safely ride the bike. Hopefully with physiotherapy this week, we'll have both riders on the gate next weekend in Spain and we can progress with the positives that we can take from here in Portugal."

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