Remembering 48
Two years ago today, 19-year old Japanese rider Shoya Tomizawa lost his life in a shock accident during the 2010 San Marino Grand Prix at Misano, when he crashed out on lap 12 of the 2010 San Marino grand prix.
With lots of attention on the late Marco Simoncelli, we want to remember, and we can’t and won’t forget this enigmatic young rider who moved us with his tears of joy, and wow us with his sensational riding skills when he took the first ever Moto2 victory in Qatar.
Tomizawa was born in Asahi, Chiba, Japan on December 10, 1990 and he started his motorcycle career at the young age of three. By the time he was 10 years old he was racing minibikes all over the land of the rising sun. He came second in the Japan road racing championship and ernt himself his first 125cc Grand Prix race in 2006 as a wildcard at Motegi and again in 2007 and 2008 and then in 2009 Shoya became a full time rider for the new CIPMOTO-GP250 Team, finishing 17th in the standings and obtaining two 10th places at his home grand prix of Motegi and season ending Valencia, in the same race fellow country man Hiro Aoyama won the final 250 title.
Tomizawa moved to the new Moto2 class, which replaced the 250cc class, for 2010. Riding Technomag CIP’s Suter he won the inaugural Moto2 race under the flood lights at Losail, fending off competition from GP riders such as Alex De Angelis and Toni Elias. He rode a supreme race and was dominant and a star was born. Shoya then followed that up with his first Grand Prix pole position and second place in the following round at Jerez in Spain. He backed that up with a further pole position after the summer break at Brno. He was seventh in the championship after ten races before that crash at the Curvone at Misano prematurely took his life leaving the racing world and paddock in shock, leaving Japan robbed of another two wheel racing star after being the first GP rider since Daijiro Kato passed away.
Technomag CIP is organizing the second edition of Shoya Day at the Circuit d’Ales in France on September 21st, and all proceeds raised will be going to Tomizawa’s family.
Rest in peace Shoya, your gone but not forgotten