M4 ECSTAR Suzuki Supersport racer Valentin Debise will make his long awaited return to action this coming weekend during the MotoAmerica event at Road America.
The Frenchman was injured when he suffered a 135-mph highside crash while competing in the Daytona 200 on March 17 at Daytona International Speedway. Debise suffered fractures to his L1 and L3 vertebrae, which were allowed to heal naturally, resulting in a lengthy recovery period.
Veteran racer Cory West was recruited by the M4 ECSTAR Suzuki team to fill in for Debise at Road Atlanta and VIRginia International Raceway, but Debise says he is now feeling better than ever and is ready to compete again.
“I feel even better than I used to in the past, which is good, because I took some time for me,” Debise told Roadracingworld.com. “It was like the first time ever, I would say, because I have been racing since I was a kid and you crash and then you go to race again. I never stop in all my life, not even during the winter. So that was the first time for me that I stop and I take a lot of time for me doing a lot of different stuff in my life, which was good to experience.”
Debise said his recovery involved a lot of resting and light exercise that progressively worked up to his normal training regimen.
“The first two weeks it was really hard to walk and I was very sleepy, so I spent a lot of time sleeping and resting,” said Debise. “And after one week, I start doing some exercise to keep my body having muscle. And I jump on the bicycle on the spinner after three weeks to keep my body working instead of doing nothing. Of course it takes some time, nearly two months before I get my normal fitness and my normal way to have power, because after the crash all of my body was tired. So I take this time to recover fully and be better than I was before.”
With four of the 18 Supersport races already run and Monster Energy/Yamalube/Y.E.S. Yamaha’s JD Beach holding a significant lead in the point standings, Debise was asked how he would approach the event at Road America and the rest of the 2018 season.
“It is more or less normal and more about having fun,” said Debise. “That’s what I want for this weekend and for my life. I try to take all the chance I can get and do the job as hard as I always do. This is what I love to do, so it’s just about enjoying myself.
“I think if I win every race and [Beach] is second every race he will still win the Championship, so I don’t have results in my mind. I just want to enjoy and have fun on the bike. I had the chance to ride a little bit before I came here [during a test at Talladega Gran Prix Raceway], and my first impression was I was really happy and had a smile on the bike. I want just to keep this spirit.”