RIP Shoya Tomizawa

[Ranger]

:s hock:

Words fail me. :( :(

[NinjaMaster]

Can't believe it, am absolutely gutted. Dunno really what to say. Thoughts and prayers for his family and friends. There's been too many farewells this year. :(

[Allyc85]

So so gutted it was a horrible accident, I dont know what else to say :( :(

RIP Shoya

[tolis]

What a horrible accident... R.I.P. Shoya :( :( :(

[DazzlaF1]

Seeing the accident, im not really suprised at the news, it was one of the worst accidents i've seen in racing for many years.

But its still very sad, the life and promising carrer of a young rider all over in an instant.

R.I.P. Shoya, you'll be sadly missed :(

[gloomyDAY]

Surreal! I just an interview with him last week. :(

Condolences to him family.

[jonny hurlock]

R.I.P Shoya Tomizawa, Thoughts goes to Shoya family and friends, His first race this season in Qatar this year was impressed me this season so much. possibly a MotoGp rider in the making. Still a sad day for motor racing. Remember Shoya for the good times.

[ZEROX]

A great young rider . His death was too early . :(

R.I.P Shoya-san . :bigcry:

[pino]

R.I.P Shoya :(

[Allyc85]

Tributes from the moto gp paddock on crash.net

http://www.crash.net/motogp/news/163024/1/motogp_pays_tribute_to_shoya_tomizawa.html

[Nikki Katz]

Horrible crash, this is really upsetting. RIP :(

[woody2goody]

R.i.p.

[I am evil Homer]

Two losses of life in such a short space of time. Two promising careers cut short and two families who will never see their sons again.

[AJP]

R.I.P Shoya Tomizawa.
This is very sad news indeed.
My heart goes out to his family and friends.

[patnicholls]

I was away today so (mercifully) haven't seen the crash, but read the news a few hours after it happened.

The overwhelming feeling is still of shock - we all know that accidents happen in racing but it still takes the wind out of you when something like this happens. Not to mention that these days we probably get a bit closer to the riders through the media than we used to so we feel hurt like this more keenly, arguably.

Shoya was THE new talent of 2010 for me - we'd seen him last year on an unfancied 250 and he'd shown flashes of what might follow, as well as settling in well to living in Europe and preparing for his career ahead. I believe he put in a popular turn with the crowd on Day Of Champions at Donington last July, and I would imagine similar fan and media-friendly appearances elsewhere. Not bad for an 18-year old in Europe for the first season.

But it was this year that things got moving for him. Moto2 is a field full of talent, ex-MotoGP guys, 125 world champions and WSB race winners and scoring points is hard for everyone. The Technomag CIP (Swiss) team he's been running with probably weren't many people's idea of title contenders, but with Shoya aboard they worked their way up there and the standings showing what he achieved in his tragically short career speak for themselves. In fact, he suffered some rotten luck in the midseason leading up to this weekend's tragedy but had always been running at the front. By any accounts the evidence was there that he would have been a big star of the future and the response to his passing reflects how the paddock felt about him too.

Moreover, as a person he was polite, respectful, happy and funny - which again would have carried him in great stead through his career.

RIP Tomizawa-san, you will be much missed.

Pat

[Rodster]

I read about the accident. I found it on Youtube and may he RIP, my condolences to his family and friends. I don't know how anyone could survive something like that. From what I saw the 1st bike ran over his upper chest area and the 2nd bike ran over his torso.

What's even more cruel is how it all played out. His bike ran a little wide running over the kerbs and instead of both he and the bike sliding away from the track the bike came back sideways and stood straight up in front of him which caused the chain reaction.

[MrMetro]

very sad news, didn't see the crash, but heard it was nasty. R.I.P Shoya

[CaptainRaiden]

Tomi was the rider I supported in every Moto2 race since his victory in Qatar. Not only did he show brilliance on worn tyres, he was also a wonderful and likeable character, always with a smile. This was a HUGE shock to me when I saw the accident and later heard the news. Still can't believe it.

R.I.P Shoya :(

[race_director]

RIP

[neninja]

Shocking accident. RIP


Thankfully these occurrences are rare and he died doing something he clearly loved.

[The Phantom]

What a blow. Farewell Shoya, you were a special talent and as far as I can see a damn decent person as well.

Julian Ryder posted this to SuperbikePlanet.

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2010/Sep/100906a.htm

I wrote this about "Tomi" earlier in the year. —JR

European fans have a new favorite: the rising star of MotoGP is a teenage kid from the seaside town of Asahi-shi. Shoya Tomizawa won the first ever Moto2 GP and set pole position for the second, finishing on the rostrum. For a rider who had only finished tenth in a GP before on a very private 250 Honda, those results would have been enough to guarantee him some new fans. But it wasn't just the committed and spectacular riding style that endeared him to the Jerez crowd and TV audiences but the way he has conducted himself.

Us Euros have certain expectations of Japanese riders, a lot of them conditioned by the crash-happy factory test riders who used to turn up for a couple of races, bend a lot of motorcycles and go back to the day job. The man who broke that stereotype forever was Nobby Ueda. Ok, he did a bit of crashing but here was a man with a great sense of humour and he was fast, very fast. The fact he spoke good English also helped. He was very different from, for instance, Tadahiko Taira, who we perceived as a rather aloof Samurai. We admired him but didn't really understand him.

In Shoya, we see an interesting mixture of what we think of as the admirable things about Japan. And we see a kid who left Japan for the first time to join his new team in the south of France at the start of last season. We know enough about the differences between Japanese society and ours to understand what a brave leap that must have been. He is lucky to have Giles Bigot as his race engineer, the man who took Alex Criville to the 1999 500cc world title. Bigot is a massively experienced operator who never seems to be anywhere near a state of panic. Just what a fast young racer needs. Last year Shoya campaigned a 250 Honda in a BBR chassis, a bike that cost around 30,000 Euros and was on average about 0.3sec slower than the million-Euro Aprilias. I asked him how come Tomizawa won Qatar with the biggest winning margin of the weekend? The answer was because he is good on worn tyres, and that's because the team has no money and put Shoya out on 40-lap old tyres at tests. In fact, Shoya had one day on a stock CBR600 and one day with the Suter chassis before going to the Barcelona test where he was joint fastest with an engine making just 122hp. His first comment after riding a four-stroke for the very first time was "That is very interesting."

Bigot picked Shoya up from Marseille airport in January '09 and drove him through the ancient seaside area of La Ciotat. Much to Giles's amusement, Shoya's cameraphone never stopped clicking; "Just like us in Japan." Bigot is not given to long speeches, but ask him about Shoya and he is hard to shut up. If he asks if the bike is chattering, the usual complaint in Moto2, Shoya will say "Yes, two corners, but no crisis." Most teenage riders would be moaning the second they got off the bike.

It is this attitude that comes through loud and clear.

After every GP the top three do TV interviews. This was another new experience for Shoya but he is a natural. At Jerez Shoya used his TV time to apologise for causing the mass crash that caused the race to be restarted and then apologised for causing his mechanics so much work.

Apparently, he also apologised to the team for only finishing second. Like most Europeans I expect Japanese to be polite, even if my Japanese friends think I am living in the past, but his calm attitude was striking in its maturity and authority. It is impossible to define star quality, but when you see it, you know it.

So far Shoya has coped with his new stardom without any problems. However, he may have a new challenge ahead. He has attracted the attention of a lot of young female fans. Shoya may need a few bodyguards at Day of Champions at Silverstone.

ENDS

http://uktodaynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Shoya-Tomizawa-Dead.jpg

Image from UKTodayNews.com

[colin edwards]

RIP Shoya. My condolences to his family and friends :(