Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Austin Forkner undergoes Lasik surgery six weeks after Arlington Supercross crash

Austin Forkner underwent Lasik surgery six weeks after crashing hard in Arlington, Texas when he lost one of his contact lenses and crashed while leading the first 250 East race of the 2024 Monster Energy Supercross season.

Despite the scary nature of the accident, (Forkner landed on his back on a patch of concrete), he walked out of the hospital the following day “hand-in-hand” with wife Rylee.

Austin Forkner: “I don’t know what this means right now, for me or my future, you know, riding and stuff related.”

“Hey guys so as some of you know I wear contacts when I ride and one of them fell out in the race in Dallas before I crashed, so I decided to get Lasik,” Forkner posted on Instagram. “I didn’t want that to happen ever again because if you wear contacts or glasses you can imagine how tough it was to essentially be riding blind on a supercross track.

“Is that why I crashed, idk it’s hard to say. Anyways, this will be better for normal life stuff as well as racing so I’m recovering now and feeling good.”

@ryleejeanforkner

he can already see better 🥲 @ALL FUN #lasik

♬ My Home - Myles Smith

Embedded in the post was a short video of the surgery posted on TikTok by Rylee along with the note, “he can already see better”.

Forkner suffered injuries to his spine and scapula in the accident and has not yet provided an update on his return to the bike.

Why Forkner's scary crash was preventable
Ricky Carmichael and Ryan Villopoto dissect Austin Forkner's frightening crash in Arlington, and discuss how it could have been avoided.

More Supercross News

Track maps revealed for the SMX World Championship
Justin Barcia on Jett Lawrence crash: “wrong place, wrong time”
Eli Tomac becomes third rider to sweep Triple Crown
Dylan Walsh to miss remainder of SX season
Cooper Webb wins the close ones
Jo Shimoda: Riding well, making smart decisions
5 Things to watch for in St. Louis
St Louis by the numbers
Cooper Webb wins fierce 450 Seattle Supercross showdown
Mindfulness turned Cameron McAdoo’s SX program around