Roads: Dario Cecconi has died after Tandragee 100 crash

38-year old racer Dario Cecconi has died after a crash at Saturday’s Tandragee 100 in Northern Ireland. The Italian sustained serious injuries during the Senior Support race, and succumbed to those injuries yesterday at Craigavon Area Hospital.

Dario was a huge advocate for road racing in his native Italy after first making his debut at the Tandragee 100 in 2012, promoting the race across Europe and even going as far as to have a map of the track tattooed onto his arm.

Speaking before the accident of his love of racing, he described the emotion and atmosphere of coming to Ireland to race.

“I completely fell in love with the Irish road racing world! I like the riders, the courses, the spectators and everyone in and around the paddock…I come in my van, by myself, for about 45 hours only to travel 45 hours back home again and I love it. There is a special atmosphere we can find only there. No other tracks give us this thrill, and no other meetings give us the sense of being part of a family.

“When I race, I feel free – I do not think, just act or react. It’s a sort of trance and it is absolutely amazing. I feel at home and calm when I have my helmet on and the visor down, it’s hard to explain… everything is natural.”

Motorcycle News joins the wider racing fraternity in wishing their deepest condolences to Dario’s family, friends teams and fans.