2013 FIM MX1 FIM Motocross World Championship runner-up Clement Desalle is currently in Portugal training with the rest of the factory Suzuki line-up but still hasn’t pencilled in a date for his return to two wheels since breaking his left shoulder in the last moto of the ’13 Motocross of Nations in Germany. Desalle needed a complex operation on the joint in early October reminiscent of his surgery in 2011 and although his progress has been good in the following two and a half months, the Belgian hasn’t ridden a motorcycle since that day in Teutschenthal where he helped his country to a memorable victory.
“I am doing what all the other guys are working through but sometimes with some small adaptations,” the 24 year old said by phone from Monte Gordo where he is based with Kevin Strijbos, Glen Coldenhoff, Julien Leiber, Jeremy Seewer and Joel Smets. “One time in the swimming pool my shoulder was feeling some fatigue, so I know I have to be careful and I’m focusing on the quality of the exercise rather than the power.”
Regarding a possible return to speed with the works RM-Z450 the winner of four Grands Prix this year could not be precise. “It is difficult to say. It depends on how I feel after Portugal. I’ll probably start off with some slow enduro riding near my place. At the moment I don’t feel too strong to be able to cope with a big jump. I mean normally the shoulder feels pretty good. The main problem is raising my arm, and lifting it high is a little bit difficult. I don’t have full mobility yet.”
Factory Suzuki boss Sylvain Geboers commented in a blog recently that it could be tough for Desalle to fight for the 2014 MXGP Championship due to recovery time needed and the early season start on March 1st in Qatar. Desalle himself was more upbeat. “For sure! That is my mentality [to go for the number one plate]. I will train and prepare for the season and I cannot think about the possibility of not going for the title. I need to get a good feeling on the bike, and from there I know what I can do and I know my potential. We’ll be working for that championship.”
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The trip to the operating theatre in October was the second hefty shoulder surgery for Desalle in the space of two years, but according to the Suzuki man it was the harder one to recover from: “It was worse, more serious. I took the choice of the operation right away after the crash and there was a lot of damage inside. It was quite a big procedure and they did three things. Firstly they removed the plate from 2011, then they cleaned the head of the bone where it goes into the socket; this was pretty bad. Lastly they fixed that small useless bone in the shoulder with two screws so that it doesn’t dislocate easily. I was in a lot of pain afterwards. For one and a half weeks I was in agony and waking up through the nights. It was very hard.”
Desalle’s accident at the Motocross of Nations removed the gloss on what was a historic Belgian success and their first grab of the Chamberlain trophy since 2004. He how has more perspective on a day of mixed emotions at Talkessel. “Honestly it took me three weeks to accept the injury so I wasn’t looking at any photos or videos. It was a strange time with strange feelings. I know what we achieved but I was so disappointed with how the day finished. It happened in the very last moto of the year! Anyway it doesn’t help to be negative about things.”
