American Motorcycle Racer Nicky Hayden Passes Away
The motorcycling community lost a
great racer and fan favorite today with the passing of Nicky
Hayden. On Wednesday of last week, while training on his bicycle on
the Rimini coast in Italy, Hayden was struck by a car. He was
transported to Maurizio Bufalini Hospital in Cesena where he was
listed in critical condition with severe cerebral damage and
multiple traumatic injuries. Just a little while ago the medical
facility releases the following:
'The medical college has confirmed the death of the patient
Nicholas Patrick Hayden, recovering from Wednesday May 17 in a
hospital intensive care unit of Cesena Bufalini as a result of
serious multiple injuries occurred on that date.'
Born in and raised in Owensboro,
Kentucky, he was often referred to by his nickname "The Kentucky
Kid." Hayden was an AMA Superbike Champion and was the last
American to win the MotoGP Championship, beating out Valentino
Rossi by an extremely small margin for the 2006 title and putting
an end to Rossi's five year title streak.
Riding a Honda CBR1000RR for Red Bull Honda in the World Superbike
Championship series, Hayden had been in Italy after competing in
the World Superbike Championship in Italy on 14 May. He was
13th in overall point standings.
Only 35 years old at
the time of his passing, Hayden's talent and determination helped
him acquire a great amount of success during his racing career,
while his spirit and personality made him a favorite with fans both
in America and across the globe. Our thoughts go out to all his
family and friends. He will sadly be missed.
Accomplishments (nickyhayden.com):
2006 MotoGP World Champion
2006 Cycle News Rider of the Year
2003 MotoGP Rookie of the Year
2002 AMA Superbike Champion
2002 Daytona 200 Winner
2002 Leads brothers Tommy and Roger to Hayden podium sweep at
Springfield TT
1999 AMA 600 Supersport Champion
1999 AMA Pro Athlete of the Year
1999 AMA Ricky Graham Flat Track Rookie of the Year
1997 AMA Dirt Track Horizon Award
