The 13-time GP world champion Ángel Nieto has died from injuries he sustained in a quad bike accident last month in Ibiza.
He suffered head injuries in the July 26 accident, involving the quad he was riding and a car. He was put into an induced coma to aid recovery. His condition was initially reported as serious but not critical but got significantly worse on the morning of 3rd August. He died later the same day with his family around him.
Ángel Nieto was a master on smaller-capacity bikes, and in a 22-year top-level career from 1964-1986 won six 50cc and seven 125cc world titles. A superstitious man, he preferred to say he’d won 12+1 titles rather than 13. He won world titles in three decades, the first in 1969 and the last in 1984.
Nieto later his own team and commentated on Spanish TV. MotoGP has released the a tribute video to mark his passing – see it on YouTube here
photo: Nationaal Archief