Cake Boss star Buddy Valastro worries he might never bake again after undergoing two emergency surgeries on his dominant right hand following a horrific bowling accident at his Montville home.
The 43-year-old Jersey Boy is now looking at months of physical therapy to repair the nerve, tendon, and muscle damage he sustained on September 20 while tinkering with a malfunctioning pinsetter.
‘I’ve reset it a hundred times. [This time] I guess I looked away, and then my hand got pinned. The metal barb pushed right through the middle of my ring finger and my middle finger. I was stuck in a machine,’ Valastro recalled in the new issue of People, on newsstands Friday.
‘My hands to me are my lifeline’: Cake Boss star Buddy Valastro worries he might never bake again after undergoing two emergency surgeries on his dominant right hand following a horrific bowling accident at his Montville home (pictured July 23)
‘It’s really preliminary right now, but they’re saying it’s definitely going to be a long road to recovery…I have a thing with my hands. If I get a paper cut on my hand, I’m p***ed off. My hands to me are my lifeline of everything I do. And I wonder, “Am I ever going to do what I used to be able to do?”‘
Buddy (born Bartolo) wrote on Instagram that he was ‘grateful’ and ‘blessed’ to be recovering at home beside his wife Lisa and their four children – Sofia, 17; Buddy Jr., 16; Marco, 13; and Carlo, 9.
‘He is an excellent patient,’ said Lisa (born Elisabetta Belgiovine) ahead of their 19th wedding anniversary on October 14.
‘He will bake again, even if he has to use his left hand. Trust me.’
‘It’s definitely going to be a long road to recovery’: The 43-year-old Jersey Boy is now looking at months of physical therapy to repair the nerve, tendon, and muscle damage he sustained on September 20 while tinkering with a malfunctioning pinsetter (pictured September 23)
‘My heart is full!’ Buddy wrote on Instagram that he was ‘grateful’ and ‘blessed’ to be recovering at home beside his wife Lisa and their four children – Sofia, 17; Buddy Jr., 16; Marco, 13; and Carlo, 9 (pictured Monday)
Ahead of their 19th wedding anniversary on October 14, Lisa said: ‘He is an excellent patient. He will bake again, even if he has to use his left hand. Trust me’ (pictured September 2)
The Big Time Bake host owns 11 locations of Carlo’s Bakery, which his father Buddy Sr. bought from Carlo Guastaffero way back in 1963.
Valastro’s rival on the Food Network show Buddy vs. Duff, Duff Goldman, has become a strong ally.
‘Duff was one of the first people who reached out when he heard and he’s been so supportive,’ Buddy revealed.
‘I’m going to need him to force me to get back into it.’
Since 1910! Valastro owns 11 locations of Carlo’s Bakery, which his father Buddy Sr. bought from Carlo Guastaffero way back in 1963
‘I’m going to need him to force me to get back into it’: The Big Time Bake host’s rival on the Food Network show Buddy vs. Duff, Duff Goldman (L), was one of the first people he heard from after the freak accident
On Tuesday, Chef Guy Fieri Instastoried a sweet video from the Santa Rosa set of Guy’s Grocery Games where the cast and crew sent good tidings.
‘My brother Buddy, listen man, terrible accident but I am so happy that you are rebounding like you always do,’ the 52-year-old restaurateur said.
‘We’re on the set of Guy’s Grocery Games shooting here at the house and a bunch of people want to say hi. Love you, brother, stay safe.’
The Bake It Like Buddy star received virtual well wishes from his colleagues via Zoom – Chef Christian Petroni, Chef Antonia Lofaso, and Chef Gerry Garvin.
‘I am so happy that you are rebounding like you always do’: On Tuesday, Chef Guy Fieri Instastoried a sweet video from the Santa Rosa set of Guy’s Grocery Games where the cast and crew sent good tidings
‘Love you, brother, stay safe!’ Buddy received virtual well wishes from his colleagues via Zoom – Chef Christian Petroni, Chef Antonia Lofaso, and Chef Gerry Garvin