Nicky Hayden dies: MotoGP champion passes from collision injuries

Nicky Hayden has passed away from injuries sustained in a vehicular collision. The 2006 MotoGP champion was just 35 years old.

Motorcycle champion Nicky Hayden died Monday of injuries he sustained in an accident last week. Hayden’s death was confirmed on the website of his Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team.

On May 17, Hayden was hit by a car while riding his bicycle in Italy. He sustained a traumatic brain injury, broken femur, broken pelvis and multiple fractured vertebrae.

The details of the accident are still being sorted out. Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport reported that security cameras showed Hayden running a stop sign as he entered the intersection where he collided with the car and speculated that the 2006 MotoGP champion could have been distracted by his iPod at the time of the crash.

He had built a resume as one of the top motorcycle competitors in the world.

Hayden made his MotoGP World Championship debut in 2003 and made 218 starts, winning three races, two of which came during his run to the title in 2006. He also competed in the Superbike World Championship and the Supersport World Championship.

The Kentucky native was honored as a MotoGP Legend in 2015.

At the time of Hayden’s death, he was driving for Red Bull Honda in the Superbike World Championship and was ranked 13th in the season standings.

Nicky Hayden is survived by his parents Rose and Earl, four siblings — brothers Roger and Tommy, both also motorcycle racers, and sisters Jenny and Kathleen — as well as fiancee Jackie Marin, to whom he had just become engaged on the same day as the accident.

The Red Bull Honda team statement included remarks from Tommy Hayden on the passing of his brother:

"On behalf of the whole Hayden family and Nicky’s fiancée Jackie I would like to thank everyone for their messages of support – it has been a great comfort to us all knowing that Nicky has touched so many people’s lives in such a positive way.Although this is obviously a sad time, we would like everyone to remember Nicky at his happiest – riding a motorcycle. He dreamed as a kid of being a pro rider and not only achieved that but also managed to reach the pinnacle of his chosen sport in becoming World Champion. We are all so proud of that.Apart from these ‘public’ memories, we will also have many great and happy memories of Nicky at home in Kentucky, in the heart of the family. We will all miss him terribly.It is also important for us to thank all the hospital staff for their incredible support – they have been very kind. With the further support of the authorities in the coming days we hope to have Nicky home soon."

Tributes to Nicky Hayden have already begun pouring in on social media, including from Formula 1 fan favorite Mark Webber:

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Nicky Hayden leaves behind not only an impressive resume as a motorcycle racer on the track, but many people he impressed by how he conducted himself off the track. His loss will certainly be felt throughout the entire motorsports community.