Kiefer Racing rider Dominique Aegerter will miss next weekend's Moto2 Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez after suffering a pelvic injury in a training incident.
Aegerter – who sits 10th in the Moto2 points table with 16 points – was training on his enduro bike on Thursday when he crashed and cracked his pelvis.
The Swiss rider avoided fully fracturing his hip, but will nevertheless require surgery on it, and with just a week until practice for the Jerez weekend, Aegerter has no choice but to miss the event.
It is unclear as of yet if the Kiefer Racing team, which only fields Aegerter this year, will seek a replacement in a bid to contest the Spanish Grand Prix.
Kiefer Racing's future after last season looked in doubt following the tragic death of team owner Stefan Kiefer during the Malaysian Grand Prix weekend.
The team's fortunes looked up when an investor was found, but this deal fell through at the eleventh hour, and the team was forced to look for funds elsewhere, while Aegerter turned to crowdfunding to pay for part of his season having secured personal backing.
As a result of the team's financial issues, it was forced to scale back to a one-rider effort, with Sandro Cortese losing his place in the Moto2 class.
The German has since switched to World Supersport, and took his debut win in just his third race at Aragon two weeks ago.
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