NICKY HAYDEN DIES AGED 35 AFTER CYCLING CRASH IN ITALY

Former MotoGP champion Nicky Hayden has died aged 35, five days after being involved in a crash while cycling.

Maurizio Bufalini Hospital in Cesena, where Hayden had been since the collision last Wednesday, made the announcement in a statement. Hayden had severe cerebral damage and multiple traumatic injuries.

“We would like everyone to remember Nicky at his happiest – riding a motorcycle, his brother Tommy said.

Hayden was training on the Rimini coast after a motorcycle race at nearby Imola. The front windshield of the black Peugeot that hit Hayden was smashed in the accident. The authorities have opened an investigation and questioned the car’s 30-year-old driver.
Older brother Tommy, who was also a motorcycle racer, said the family had many “great and happy memories” of Hayden.
“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,” he said.
“We are all so proud of that. We will all miss him terribly.”
Sister Kathleen added “Today I not only lost my big brother, but I lost a best friend.”
Hayden won the MotoGP title in 2006, finishing narrowly ahead of Valentino Rossi of Italy. In a MotoGP career spanning 2003 to 2016 with Honda and Ducati, he posted three victories and 28 podium finishes in 218 races.
Hayden, who was nicknamed the Kentucky Kid, had competed for Red Bull Honda in the World Superbike Championship in Italy on 14 May.
Red Bull Honda World Superbike said that the racing world had said goodbye to “one of its dearest sons.”
“The ‘Kentucky Kid’ will be sorely missed by all that ever had the pleasure of meeting him or the privilege to see him race a motorcycle around a track, be it dirt or asphalt,” a statement read.

After switching to the World Superbike championship last year, Hayden finished fifth over all.

He was 13th in Superbike this season, riding for the Red Bull Honda team.

“I’m shattered after the news,” the three-time MotoGP world champion Marc Marquez wrote in a posting on Twitter. “We will never forget you!

Dani Pedrosa, a MotoGP standout, wrote: “Always in my heart, champ. RIP Nicky. #69.”

Hayden was born in Owensboro, Ky. Several family members flew to Italy from the United States, including Hayden’s mother and brother, after the accident on Wednesday.