Honda rider Steve Plater crashed at Quarry Hill

HM Plant Honda rider Steve Plater is to undergo further surgery following his high speed crash in practice for this year's North West 200 road races.

The 41-year-old from Lincolnshire has had two operations, one to plate two broken bones and the second to relieve pressure build up on the nerves.

The eight-time North West winner will go under the knife again after a head scan revealed a break in his neck.

The fracture was located between the sixth and seventh vertebrae.

Plater had been experiencing some shoulder and chest pain and attended his local hospital in Lincolnshire last week for further tests.

The Woodhall Spa racer will undergo an operation at a specialist hospital next Wednesday to carry out a bone graft from his pelvis and realign and plate the vertebrae from the front.

A second operation will then be carried out the week after to plate the vertebrae from the back.

"I thought I'd be well on the road to recovery by now following the crash at the North West so this is definitely a setback," said Plater, who will miss this year's Isle of Man TT.

"I knew I wasn't feeling right which is why I went back into hospital for more tests last week and I'm now just relieved that we know what the problem is, but more so, that it can be fixed."

E-mail this to a friend

Printable version