Dr. Maurizio Zorio and his team carried out the surgery and inserted a metal plate to stabilize the two cervical vertebrae fractured in the crash. In addition a fragment of bone that had lodged close to the spinal cord was also removed and plastic surgery was carried out on the relevant area with a skin graft from the hip.
According to Mandy Toubkin, spokesperson for Sunninghill Hospital in Johannesburg, “the operation went well and the neuro-surgeons are satisfied by Laconi’s progress and that the French rider’s health is stable.”
Paul Louis Coulignon, lawyer and Laconi’s friend however has said:“that the doctors have found that his left leg is paralyzed, but it’s early to say if the paralysis is temporary or permanent and that he comunicates only by hand squeezing.”
If all goes according to plans, but not before May 30th, Laconi will be flown to Paris where he will continue his recovery.
via; twowheelsblog.com
http://www.twowheelsblog.com/post/2256/regis-laconi-health-update
Get well soon Laconi!
Laconi has responded well to cure and doctors are confident in a full recovery of Laconi situation and they will be operating on the spinal cord May19th, 2009. Dr. Maurizio Zorio, considered one of the best neurosurgeons, will be in charge of the operation.
Even though Laconi was under sedation, at a brief moment that he was lucid, he exchanged some ironic jokes with the doctors. Regis’s father will be expected in Joannesburg tomorrow and will give the permission to operated on his son.
DFXcorse.com
Laconi’s tragic accident
After the incident that happened in the first round of free practice, he has suffered injuries to the torso and head. He has been transfer to Sunninghill Hospital by helicopter.
motoblog.it
Bayliss is testing Ducati MotoGP bikes at Mugello
Troy Bayliss after the first day of testing;
“This is literally the first time I’ve ridden a motorcycle since we unveiled the 1198 after the end of last season at Portimao. It was nice to shake off a bit of rust and with Mugello being such a physical circuit it was a good workout! The last time I rode a GP machine was at Valencia, which was the 990cc, but the 800cc isn’t exactly lacking power and I just spent today getting a feel for it. I can’t wait to get back out there tomorrow and on Thursday and hopefully by the end of the session I’ll be able to give some useful feedback to Filippo (Preziosi)”
Go Fabrizio!!!
After the first day of testing for the World Superbike at Monza, Michel Fabrizio on Ducati, became first with the time of 1’45 .447. Sykes (1’45 .758) on Yamaha and then Japanese Haga (1’45 .790) followed his time. Spies was struggling and placed only 7th (1’46 .013) in front of Biaggi (1’46 .054) of Aprilia.
As all the other races in 2009 season, we are expecting an exciting race weekend coming up.
Ducati opens two new dealerships in key locations; both to continue the roll-out of the Ducati Retail Design program
Cupertino, CA – Ducati North America is proud to announce the grand opening of two brand new Ducati stores. A&S Ducati of Sacramento, which held opening festivities this past weekend at their Roseville location, and Ducati Newport Beach, which will hold a “Welcome to the Beach” party Saturday and Sunday, May 9 and 10, from 9am to 5pm.
A&S Ducati welcomed customers to its new exclusive Ducati dealership this past weekend. Despite the rain, big crowds enjoyed the festivities throughout both days while the Ducati Hypermotard truck hosted test rides around the Sacramento area. Additionally, customers were able to preview the very first new Streetfighter on display, courtesy of DNA, ahead of its nationwide launch weekend the 22-23rd of this month.
Ducati Newport Beach will open on May 9 as the newest Ducati-exclusive dealer in Southern California, located on Newport Boulevard, just blocks from the Pacific ocean in Orange County. The opening festivities at the dealership will include a “Beach Party” and the Ducati “Duc Truck” providing test rides throughout the weekend.
“These new exclusive California dealerships are a testament to the current buzz around the Ducati brand,” said Ducati Network Development Manager Tim McNeely. “We are excited that both of these important locations are open for business and we look forward to developing exciting new showroom environments over the summer. The future is bright for Ducati, as our development plan in the USA remains on track.”
For more information about these exciting new dealerships and their grand opening celebrations; please visit www.ducatiusa.com.
Ducati Newport Beach
1601 Newport Blvd
Costa Mesa, CA, 92627
949-706-1616
www.ducatinewportbeach.com
A&S Ducati
1125 Orlando Ave
Roseville, CA, 95661
916-726-7334
www.ducati-motorcycles.ascycles.com
via http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=36464
Troy Bayliss will be in Monza for the SBK race this weekend before he joins the Ducati testing event between May 12th and 14th. He will be testing a Desmosedici GP9 accompanying Ducati official test pilot Vittoriano Guareschi.
Motorcycle of the Year
After nearly 40.000 reader votes, Ducati Streetfighter was awarded by Motoiclismo.it as the “Motorcycle of 2009” after it has already been chosen as the “Best Motorcycle” late last year in Milan.
An early preproduction pictures of the concept Moto-Terminator
source;
autoblog.com
A screenshot from Terminator Salvation