Three-time Australian champion Dean Ferris has been forced to withdraw from his planned racing appearances at the Moree and Coolum rounds of the 2019 Pirelli MX Nationals after injuring his thumb in a practice crash last week.

Ferris, who was intending on racing the final two stops aboard a Recover8 Raceline-supported KTM 450 SX-F, broke his thumb last week while practicing at Coolum, prompting him to undergo surgery on Friday to repair the damage.

The New South Welshman only just made his plans official last week of returning to the MX Nationals after he mutually agreed to part ways with Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing in the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship.

“Some of you guys may have heard, but last week I crashed at Coolum while practicing and I broke my thumb,” Ferris commented. “It did require surgery, I got that fixed by Dr Andrews on Friday. So no Moree and Coolum for me in the next couple of weeks unfortunately.”

Ferris indicated the downtime while he recovers will allow him to slow down in what’s been a busy and unusual year, where he filled in at factory Yamaha in the MXGP World Championship before injury forced him to return home, later making a surprise appearance at Murray Bridge’s MX Nationals double-header and then taking on the Pro Motocross opportunity.

It’s unclear at this stage if Ferris will pursue support to contest the upcoming Australian Supercross Championship, which kicks off at Brisbane Entertainment Centre on 12 October.