Chase Sexton (Kawasaki): Cruciate ligament injury successfully operated on

Chase Sexton’s crash on Friday ahead of the fourth round of the US Nationals at High Point caused quite a stir and sparked a flood of speculation. Sexton had been thrown off his bike over the front wheel during a long jump and had blamed the incident on his bike. “I just became a passenger and couldn’t do anything,” he explained after the incident. The Kawasaki factory team contradicted this statement, explaining that an analysis of the data had shown that the engine had not malfunctioned, but had been slowed down during the jump by the rear brake being applied, which led to the crash. Kawasaki team boss Dan Fahie remarked somewhat sarcastically: “Perhaps we should have explained to him that you pull the clutch.”

Speculation about a team change

Even during his time at KTM, Sexton tended to attribute his crash problems more or less openly to his bike. Now this scenario is repeating itself at Kawasaki, and that is precisely where the team is particularly sensitive following the previous incident involving Jorge Prado. Viewed from the outside, Prado’s story did indeed have to do with the Kawasaki. However, one must also ask here to what extent mental factors played a part in Prado’s problems, but that is another matter. In any case, following the mutual accusations, speculation immediately flared up in the US that Sexton and Kawasaki had already parted ways. Some even speculated that a deal between Sexton and the Star Racing Yamaha works team was already a done deal. All of this, however, overlooks the fact that the highly lucrative contracts of top works riders are drawn up by specialist lawyers with various clauses to ensure they are watertight. Let us recall the situation following the move by Herlings and Gajser at the end of last year. They were bound by contracts that did not even allow them to train on a standard bike. Similarly, the early termination of the contract between Prado and Kawasaki in 2025 did not go ahead without massive concessions on both sides.

Cruciate ligament surgery

The operation on his right knee has already taken place, and as is well known, the rehabilitation process for cruciate ligament injuries is a lengthy one. Consequently, the 2026 season is over for Chase Sexton. Whether Kawasaki and Sexton will continue their partnership in future remains to be seen. For now, the dust will settle on the public dispute between Sexton and Kawasaki; everyone will take a deep breath, and then we’ll see how things pan out.