On Track Off Road No. 194

FEATURE
“I then progressed with physio
and could eventually walk on
it again.”
Although ruinous to the point
where it still affects his daily
life, the most painful part of
the experience for Watson was
the arduous trip back from
South America.
“When I first did it they put
the cast straight on,” he describes.
“We thought I’d just
broken metatarsals but getting
to the Grand Prix in Argentina
means three flights and one
of those is fourteen hours so
my whole foot was just swelling
up in this cast on the way
back. If they had seen the
navicular break – I still don’t
understand how they missed
it - then I think I would have
had a different cast or they
wouldn’t have let me fly home
so early. I remember on the
plane my Dad took his car
keys and run one up and down
the cast until we had a line
and we split it open because
I was in absolutely agony. As
soon as we had some relief in
the cast then it was like freedom.”
Like most youngsters faced
with a sudden and dramatic
jolt to their everyday life and
routine, Watson had to balance
the mental demands of
rehab as much as the physical
discomfort. “I had broken my
collarbone before, but this was
my first ‘real’ injury and the
first time where I’d been more
than two weeks off the bike,”
he explains. “I didn’t really
know what life was like without
motocross and being able
to ride 3-4 times a week. Just
sitting on the sofa and not
being able to move much for
all that time was the toughest
part…but it was also nice
-with hindsight - because it
made me realise and appreciate
what I normally have.”
Watson recovered to become
one of the stars of the MX2
class. He celebrated his first
podium result in 2018, finishing
4th in the world, but was
dealt a double-injury blow
in 2019. 2020 represents his
final term on the 250 and
where he is expected to be
one of the protagonists for the
final top three positions in the
standings. He’ll be challenging
for more trophies, in spite of
the still-deformed left foot.
“It still gives me quite a lot of
trouble on a daily basis now,”
he reveals. “I cannot go running
and if I have to run for
some reason then I will feel
it later that night. I still have
metalwork in there. The broke
can also be stress fractured
and the ligaments aren’t great.
So, any intense work means
I can cause more damage.
With my training I try to stay
away from anything too heavy
for my foot. With a motocross
boot I don’t feel anything –
even on big jump landings -
I don’t notice anything different
compared to before the
accident. I’m lucky with that.”
“Overall it does bring some
realisation to how dangerous
the sport can be…but we all
know that.”