Ivan Palazzesse fatal crash

On the second lap of the 1989 Großer Preis von Deutschland for 250 cm3 motorcycles held at Hockenheim on 28 May 1989, while approaching the first lefthander of the Stadium section, Austrian rider Andreas Preining who was dicing for positions mid-pack with Iván Palazzese, Bruno Bonhuil, Fabio Barchitta and others, suffered sudden engine failure. His bike had an abrupt stop being hit by Palazzese who closely followed him. Palazzese was thrown in the air and fell down in the middle of the track and his purple works Aprilia caught fire. While picking himself up off the ground he was struck by Barchitta and Bonhuil who both crashed, Preining escaped unhurt.

The accident happened in front of thousands of people in the stands of the Stadium, three riders were laying motionless on the asphalt and no marshal nor doctors intervened. It was Virginio Ferrari who first stopped his motorcycle and tried to revive Iván Palazzese giving him immediate cardiac massage, but the poor Venezuelan was dead, having sustained massive chest injuries. Other mechanics of Team Servisco who arrived from the boxes helped Barchitta and Bonhuil.

The race wasn't stopped and a few minutes later, when the front-runners arrived to the place of accident Masahiro Shimizu braked hard, causing a pile-up in which Carlos Cardús and Shimizu himself fell down. This was the second time Virginio Ferrari stopped his bike during a race trying to help a rider after an accident: in a similar situation at Spa-Francorchamps in 1984 he vainly treated Kevin Wrettom.

Fabio Barchitta who suffered lumbar vertebrae fractures hitting the pedal of his motorcycle while falling down, was transported to Heidelberg hospital with signs of paralyses. He eventually recovered after several months of convalescence, Bonhuil had fourteen different fractured bones in the leg, arm and collarbone after the crash. Sixteen years later Bruno Bonhuil lost his life in an accident that happened during the 2005 Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix.

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• Palazzesse
• moto
• 250cc
• Hockenheim
• 1989
• fatal

[popadangabriel]

My goodness , how could they not red flag the race the second the crash occurred . I mean ye it's 1989 , but still a steward with a flag must have been at scachskurve at the end of the straight.

[gabryjoint]

bisogna sempre imparare dal passato..

[myleftearful]

I remember watching this live. An absolute disgrace!!!!!!!

[taide8ngon]

THe FIM was garbage back then I remember when this happened and the fact that they did not stop the race comes as a shock to me after all these years!

[cucumber2111]

RIP