Another major motorsports death. 2008 Moto2 Champion and MotoGP rising star Marco Simoncelli was killed in the Malaysian GP in MotoGP today. He was an entertaining rider and personality; to me the most entertaining of the premier class because he pushed the limits at all times. Perhaps this justifies other riders' complaints earlier in the season that he was too reckless. I was always a little nervous whenever the cameras were tracking him.
Here's the graphic description if anyone is interested in how it happened:
Just a couple laps in, he slid out but regained grip on the front tire and ended up inadvertently cutting across the path of following riders while hanging off the side of the bike. He was hit in the back of the neck/head area by the bikes of a couple other riders - Edwards and Rossi - who had nowhere to go. Not a real fast section but fast enough; maybe 140 km/hr. His helmet went flying off with the bike debris and the last race footage before the red flag showed his lifeless body sliding face first down the track. A disturbing image and a very sad end to a race that was barely underway.
I'm not sure there's much that can be done to prevent incidents like this. A Moto2 rider was also killed last year when he lost his bike and was hit in the chest area by a following bike. Prior to that, the last death was in 2003 at Suzuka, and the track (Suzuka) hasn't been used for MotoGP since due to a lack of adequate runoff on one of the high speed turns.
I wouldn't be surprised if this incident compels Rossi to retire soon. Rossi and Simoncelli appeared to be friends, and Simoncelli seemed to ride a little more cautiously than normal whenever he was close behind Rossi. Like Schumacher, I don't imagine Rossi is riding for much more than the pleasure of the competition at this point in his career. I'm not sure how much pleasure will remain.
Here's the graphic description if anyone is interested in how it happened:
Just a couple laps in, he slid out but regained grip on the front tire and ended up inadvertently cutting across the path of following riders while hanging off the side of the bike. He was hit in the back of the neck/head area by the bikes of a couple other riders - Edwards and Rossi - who had nowhere to go. Not a real fast section but fast enough; maybe 140 km/hr. His helmet went flying off with the bike debris and the last race footage before the red flag showed his lifeless body sliding face first down the track. A disturbing image and a very sad end to a race that was barely underway.
I'm not sure there's much that can be done to prevent incidents like this. A Moto2 rider was also killed last year when he lost his bike and was hit in the chest area by a following bike. Prior to that, the last death was in 2003 at Suzuka, and the track (Suzuka) hasn't been used for MotoGP since due to a lack of adequate runoff on one of the high speed turns.
I wouldn't be surprised if this incident compels Rossi to retire soon. Rossi and Simoncelli appeared to be friends, and Simoncelli seemed to ride a little more cautiously than normal whenever he was close behind Rossi. Like Schumacher, I don't imagine Rossi is riding for much more than the pleasure of the competition at this point in his career. I'm not sure how much pleasure will remain.