FR3.5: Back injury sidelines Vaxiviere

French racer Matthieu Vaxiviere will miss the next two Formula Renault 3.5 rounds and the Le Mans 24 Hours as a result of a back injury sustained in Monaco.

The Lotus driver was launched into the air on the run out of Sainte Devote on the opening lap of the FR3.5 race supporting the Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday, and he returned to the pits to retire.

Having struggled to get out of the car and walk away, Vaxiviere was taken to hospital, where X-rays revealed a fracture of the fifth vertebra. The estimated 45-day recovery period means the 19-year-old will miss the next two FR3.5 rounds at Spa and Moscow Raceway, and he will also have to skip the World Endurance Championship's Le Mans showpiece, which he was scheduled to compete in with the ProSpeed Porsche GTE Am squad.

"I'm now fighting another kind of battle," said Vaxiviere, who left the hospital on Wednesday. "I'm a fighter and my morale's good. I'm going to do my utmost to come back even stronger. My aim is to be back in the car at the Nurburgring in mid-July."