MOTOR RACING: Ducati's Marquez undergoes successful double surgery after French GP crash

Reigning MotoGP champion Marc Marquez underwent successful double surgery on Sunday in Madrid following his crash in Saturday's French Grand Prix sprint, Ducati announced.

Marquez suffered a nasty highside crash at Le Mans where the Spaniard fractured his foot and was thrown off his bike, which cartwheeled through the air before landing beside him.

The 33-year-old had also planned to undergo shoulder surgery after the Catalan Grand Prix next weekend before the crash changed the timeline and he opted to get both surgeries done together.

"The medical team... successfully stabilized the fracture in the fifth metatarsal of the rider's right foot," Ducati said in a statement.

"Simultaneously, Marquez underwent a second, pre-planned surgical procedure to fix a past injury in his right shoulder. This previous trauma had become painful again following the violent crash at last year's Indonesian Grand Prix.

"The doctors removed two screws and a bone fragment from a previous Latarjet surgery (in December 2019) that had shifted, compressing the radial nerve."

Ducati said Marquez would remain in the hospital overnight and his progress over the upcoming weeks would determine his return to racing.

He was set to miss next weekend's Catalan Grand Prix and will now target a return at the Italian Grand Prix scheduled for May 29-31 at Mugello, Ducati's home turf.

Marquez, who has yet to secure a podium finish this season, has now dropped to seventh in the standings -- 71 points behind Aprilia's championship leader Marco Bezzecchi.

-Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru;Editing by Christian Radnedge/Reuters