Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki MotoAmerica Superbike racer Brandon Paasch has undergone successful surgery on his left shoulder.
“I’ve been having a problem with my shoulder for the past year and a half, two years,” Paasch told Roadracingworld.com. “Right after I signed with Altus [Motorsports], I went and tested their bike. I highsided the thing and knocked myself out. That’s why I missed the first race of 2022. I’ve been having a problem with my shoulder ever since. It will just pop out at random times. It popped out during the red flag at Circuit of The Americas this year. We just decided we needed to get it fixed.”
Paasch said the diagnoses was that the labrum in his shoulder was torn. The labrum is a “thick tissue or type of cartilage,” according to Johns Hopkins Medicine, that helps keep the upper arm bone [the humerus] in the shoulder joint.
The surgery was performed by track day rider and road racing fan Dr. Thomas Bryan on October 25 at San Gabriel Valley Surgery Center in West Covina, California.
“He had to go in and re-attach it [the labrum] with some anchors and put it back in the right spot. It was a pretty short surgery, like about 90 minutes. I was in and out the same day,” said Paasch. “It’s pretty crazy. I’ve been riding like this for about two years now. I think once it’s healed I’m going to be a completely different version of myself, because for the last two years now, even on my training days and test days, I’m not going to my full potential because I’m worried about my shoulder coming out.
“But also at the same time, I wasn’t using it as an excuse. I wasn’t telling anybody what was going on. I was just kind of dealing with it on my own, keeping it quiet. Obviously, the team knew about it because Chris [Ulrich, Team Hammer Vice President of Operations/Team Manager] was there when I originally dislocated my shoulder.
“I’m not someone who is big on excuses. I don’t want people thinking that I’m making excuses for myself why I’m not getting results or why I’m struggling a little bit here and there. So, I just kept it to myself until I could get it fixed.”
Paasch said he is flying home to Florida on Saturday, October 28, and expected to be fully recovered and ready to resume riding in eight to 10 weeks.
