Yamaha’s Jonathan Rea has been dealt a major blow ahead of this year’s first round of the World Superbike Championship after crashing in testing at Phillip Island in Australia.
The six-time champion suffered fractures to his left foot in the incident, which occurred at Turn 2.
Rea has been ruled out of round one at the iconic venue on Australia’s southern coast and faces a race against time to be fit for Portimao in Portugal at the end of March.
A statement from Rea’s Pata Maxus Yamaha team on Monday said: “Jonathan Rea will miss the opening round of the 2025 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship after a crash on the first day of testing at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit.
“Rea fell on the exit of Turn 2 in the closing stages of Monday’s first two-hour test session. He was taken to the circuit medical centre, before being transferred to Cowes for further assessment where it was confirmed he had sustained multiple fractures to the left foot.
“He will take no further part in testing or the upcoming race weekend.”
Yamaha team principal Paul Denning said the 38-year-old is due to see a specialist on Wednesday before returning home for further treatment.
“It wasn’t an easy day on Jonathan’s side and a bitterly disappointing day for him and his crew and for everybody in the Yamaha World Superbike project,” said Denning.
“We’ve had such a step over the winter with Jonathan and his confidence and comfort on the R1, and his ability to be consistent and smooth and get the best out of the bike.
“Everything was looking normal today, but Phillip Island has a habit of biting you quite hard sometimes.
“It’s a fast and very high grip circuit, but such a high grip circuit means when the grid releases… we’ve seen today many quite violent accidents, and Jonathan got unlucky with his left foot getting caught up in the bike and he’s broken some bones in the left foot.
“The next steps aren’t exactly clear, but the basic plan is to get back to the UK as quickly as possible and to have some surgery and start the recovery process.”
Assessing Rea’s chances of making his comeback at round two in Portugal from March 28-30, Denning said: “At this stage, it’s difficult to say. I’d prefer not to say. He’s seeing a specialist here on Wednesday before he goes home to get, let’s say, a full initial report and understanding of the injury.
“After we have that and after surgery is planned, let’s see, but Portimao is not so far away so I think it’s going to be a big challenge.”
Rea completed 20 laps before the crash and was 15th in the final classification on Monday.
The Northern Ireland rider had highlighted the importance of three strong points-scoring finishes at the season opener as he bids to put the disappointment of a difficult debut year as a Yamaha rider behind him, with Rea struggling to 13th in 2024 following his shock switch from Kawasaki.
However, the 119-time race winner’s main priority will be returning to fitness in time for round two in Portugal next month.
Ducati’s Nicolo Bulega, the championship runner-up last season, was fastest on the first day of the two-day test from Andrea Iannone (Go Eleven Ducati) and defending champion Toprak Razgatlioglu on the factory BMW.