Injury Sidelines American MotoGP Star Edwards Until Early June

American Colin Edwards is scheduled to return to the MotoGP World Championship at the Grand Prix of Catalunya on June 3 after undergoing successful surgery May 7 to repair a broken collarbone.  He will miss the next race, the French Grand Prix, on May 20 at Le Mans.

Edwards, from Houston, suffered the injury Saturday, May 5 during a crash in qualifying at the Portuguese Grand Prix at the Estoril Circuit. Randy de Puniet fell in front of Edwards, causing him to crash and miss the race Sunday.

Dr. Javier Mir used 10 screws and a titanium plate during surgery in Barcelona, Spain, to rebuild Edwards’ collarbone, which was fractured in five places. Mir also operated on Edwards’ collarbone when it was broken in a crash last season.

“Doctor Mir and his team have done a great job,” Edwards said Monday. “The surgery was really quick. I’m feeling great, still a little dizzy from the anesthesia, but feeling all right."

“I’m here watching TV and tweeting (@texastornado5). Just want to let everyone know I’m OK!”

Two-time World Superbike champion Edwards joined the NGM Mobile Forward Racing team this season, riding a Suter-BMW machine under the new Claiming Rule Teams regulations. He has competed in MotoGP since 2003.

The NGM Mobile Forward team said it will name a replacement for Edwards this week for the French Grand Prix.

Edwards is tied for 14th in the MotoGP standings this season despite missing the race in Portugal. He is the third-ranking rider on CRT machinery – production-based bikes that are slower and less technologically advanced than prototype machines.

The MotoGP World Championship will compete Aug. 17-19 at the fifth annual Red Bull Indianapolis GP at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.