Suzuki announced today that Ben Townley would miss the final six rounds of the 2016 FIM World Motocross Championship after sustaining internal injuries earlier this week during a testing crash.
According to a team statement, Townley went down while testing at Mantova in Italy (site of last weekends MXGP round) and was hospitalized upon his return to Hasselt, Belgium with damage to his intestines that required scans, checks and close observation.
Townley return to racing full-time in 2016, three years after announcing his retirement from racing, signing with the Suzuki World MXGP team. Townley returned to International competition in 2015, racing the final round of the FIM World Motocross Championship at Glen Helen and the Motocross of Nations for New Zealand.
The former Troy Lee Designs rider seemed reinvigorated at the Motocross of Nations in Ernee, France, when he holeshot the third race and shadowed 2015 FIM MXGP World Motocross Champion Romain Febvre for most of the moto. Townley finished with impressive 6-2 results.
The 2007 250SX East Region Champion’s return to racing has been filled with ups and downs. Townley missed time earlier this year due to a virus he suffered prior to the Grand Prix of Europe. He also made news earlier this year when he was critical of track conditions at the opening two rounds—Qatar and Thailand. He is currently sixteenth in MXGP points with one moto podium finish.
The team, which is also without Kevin Strijbos (wrist), is currently looking for a replacement for Townley from the Grand Prix of the Czech Republic towards the end of July and the remainder of the season.
