Who is Cal Crutchlow? Everything to know about Johann Zarco’s replacement for the Italian Grand Prix

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Cal Crutchlow will be returning to the premier class paddock in his race overalls for the first time since 2023 in place of the injury-stricken Johann Zarco at LCR Honda.

The British rider’s entry in the Italian Grand Prix this weekend marks his 11th replacement ride since relinquishing his full-time riding duties in the premier class at the end of the 2020 term.

Cal Crutchlow is the most successful British rider that the modern-era of MotoGP has ever seen, with three Grand Prix victories to his name, and a best championship finish of fifth place – achieved in 2013.

His most famous victory arguably came at the 2016 Australian Grand Prix, where he fended off advances from the legendary Valentino Rossi to take his second and penultimate race win in the premier class.

This is everything else you need to know about the British professional motorcycle racer.

Cal Crutchlow will replace the injured Johann Zarco at the 2026 Italian GP

Cal Crutchlow was given the nod to return to MotoGP following Johann Zarco’s horrific crash at the Catalan Grand Prix. The Frenchman got caught up in Francesco Bagnaia’s Ducati prototype in a turn-one incident and suffered injuries to his knee.

Is Cal Crutchlow Honda’s best option to replace Johann Zarco?

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Honda’s usual replacement riders, Aleix Espargaro and Takaaki Nakagami, are recovering from injury and focusing on the development of their 2027 bike, respectively, leading LCR to seek the services of one of their former riders.

The British rider took part in a MotoGP test at Misano on Monday in order to get himself up to speed with the current crop of bikes, with LCR later confirming that he would take the reins of Zarco’s RC213V at Mugello.

Where was Cal Crutchlow born? What is his nationality?

Cal Crutchlow was born in Coventry, United Kingdom, and was named after American motorcycle racer Cal Rayborn. Despite taking part in football trials for several clubs in the West Midlands, Crutchlow pursued a career in motorcycle racing following a knee injury.

He races under a British license, with Crutchlow’s maiden MotoGP victory at the 2016 Czech Republic Grand Prix marking the first Briton to win a race in the premier class since Barry Sheene in 1981.

How old is Cal Crutchlow and when was he born?

Cal Crutchlow was born on the 29th October 1985, making him 40 years old at the time of writing.

He made his debut in Grand Prix motorcycle racing in 2011 at the age of 26, after beginning his racing career on two wheels in the Supersport World Championship. He later moved to the Superbike World Championship before switching to MotoGP.

In 2009, the Briton became a world champion in the Supersport category, beating Irish rider Eugene Laverty to the title by seven points in the season finale.

• READ MORE: How Cal Crutchlow decided to ‘risk it all’ before arriving in MotoGP

How tall is Cal Crutchlow and how much does he weigh?

According to the official MotoGP website, Cal Crutchlow is 170cm tall, making him 5ft 6in. His weight is also listed on his rider profile as 66kg, making him 10st 5lbs.

What number does Cal Crutchlow race with?

Cal Crutchlow typically races with the number 35 adorned on the front fairing of his motorcycle, and explained why he uses the two-digit number in a past interview with Visor Down.

He said, “I get asked this quite a lot, and it really is a good story! I was number 5 for many years, and I couldn’t have 5, so I just stuck a 3 in front of it a year after – that’s it!

“There’s not a link to it – I always loved number 5, and I even thought about going back to it [in 2012], but Colin Edwards is number 5, and at the end of last year we thought he was retiring.

“I said to him, ‘I’m having your number next year,’ and he said he wasn’t retiring and anyway kept number 35! But a few people like it now, so I’ll stick to 35 as it’s a good number for me.”

Cal Crutchlow’s Grand Prix career racing stats