Houlihan suffered a series of injuries in last month’s Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia and eventually was withdrawn from the event on Day 9 when officials noticed he was struggling to lift his bike at a fuel stop.
Houlihan is regarded as one of the toughest competitors in Australian sport and despite a list of injuries that would have made Evil Knievel envious, it looks as though the veteran will live to fight another day – as soon as May in fact, at the Hellas Rally in Greece.
Houlihan had a day of tests and scans with Dr Andrews with the process beginning with three sets of x-rays, two “very uncomfortable” MRIs and one CT Scan.
At the end of the process it was determined that Houlihan has three broken ribs on his left side, two broken ribs on his right side and a tear in a rotator cuff.
The good news is that his right bicep is torn and not totally separate from the bone as first thought. Houlihan also has a broken nose and swollen eye sockets from a Day 1 crash.
Despite all the issues Dr Andrews decided that surgery was not necessary at this point and Houlihan was provided with some steroid injections to help with the pain and recovery.
“We were all prepared for surgery, but it looks like I dodged a bullet for the time being,” said Houlihan.
“Steve has been an amazing part of my team over the last few years and has been an incredible support.
“We have put a recovery program in place and hopefully I can be back on the bike in four to six weeks.”
While the immediate future is open, it looks as though there will be some work to be done when Houlihan decides to eventually hang up his helmet.
A couple of screws in a plate in his shoulder have come loose and the bone has started to grow around them.
“I wish the Velcro worked as good on my body as it does on the bike,’ joked Houlihan in reference to his major sponsor, Velcro.
“Unfortunately the shoulder issue can only be solved by grinding out the bone and applying another bone graft and new plate, which would have me off the bike for an extended period of time.
“That surgery can wait for now because I am keen to be back on the bike and ready for the Hellas Rally, before preparing for another crack at Dakar and then the 2026 European championships.”
Dr Andrews has become the go-to man for many of Australia’s extreme athletes and has a collection of memorabilia on his walls from grateful patients including Houlihan, Toby Price, Daniel ‘Chucky’ Sanders, Chad Read, Todd Waters, SX Champion Luke Clout or any of a host of other national and international stars.
There are also other champions from the world of sports like bull riding, professional boxers, an Australian archer and several international rugby union players.
Dr Andrews is an orthopaedic upper limb surgeon, and his practice encompasses surgeries of the shoulder, elbow, wrist and hand including Microsurgery.
“Andrew is a bit beaten up, but nothing that a little time, rest and anti-inflammatories won’t fix,” said Dr Andrews.
“There is no doubt that Andrew is tough and like all high-functioning athletes he just wants to get back to what he does best and that is being on the bike.
“We have a plan and he is usually pretty good at sticking to it.”
Dr Andrews private practice is located at the Brisbane Private Hospital. He is also certified as Master Independent Medical Examiner (MCIME) with the American Board of Independent Medical Examiners (ABIME). He is regularly sought after for expert opinion in upper limb injuries.
While his list of achievements and qualifications are longer than many of the arms he has operated on, they are only matched by his passion for motorsport.
Dr Andrews volunteers for RACESAFE, Australia’s premier motorsport emergency response service and is regularly the trackside for events.
