Former Formula USA and AMA Champion Shawn Higbee lost a portion of his left little finger and had a knuckle of his left ring finger fused after a crash during the F-USA Thunderbike race March 6 at Daytona International Speedway. Higbee started Sunday’s Thunderbike race from the back of the grid (due to missing the call to pre-grid) and crashed when he ran into the back of some slower riders in the turn two kink on the opening lap. The Wisconsin resident got his left hand caught between his Buell XB12R’s frame spar and the ground, causing the damage to his hand. Otherwise uninjured, Higbee lost the tip of his left little finger, to the first knuckle, according to Buell Communications Manager and fellow Thunderbike racer Paul James, and doctors at Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach, Florida, fused the second knuckle (the one closest to the hand) of his left ring finger. Higbee was expected to remain in the hospital for at least two days following the surgery. Higbee didn’t specifically say he would not race his Bartel’s/New Castle Buell in the Daytona 200 March 12, as he planned to contest the entire AMA Formula Xtreme series, but he told James he would evaluate his racing plans “in a couple of weeks.” In real life, Higbee is a test rider for Buell Motorcycle Company.