Thousands of fans filled the streets of Coriano in Italy on Thursday to pay their final respects to MotoGP rider Marco Simoncelli, whose funeral took place at the town’s Church of Santa Maria Assunta.
The 24-year-old Simoncelli died of chest, head and neck injuries after he lost control of his Honda during Sunday’s Malaysian Grand Prix.
Simoncelli’s funeral was attended by his friends and family — his father, Paolo, his mother, Rossella, his sister, Martina — as well as stars of the sport, such as Valentino Rossi, Mattia Pasini, Jorge Lorenzo and Randy De Puniet.
Photo: Reuters
“The night before your last race you said you wanted to win the Grand Prix, because there on the podium everyone could see you better,” Bishop of Rimini Francesco Lambiasi said. “Now it pains us not to be able to see you, but it gives us peace and so much joy to know that we are being looked down on by you from the highest podium of them all. I also want to sign the banner that says: ‘Marco, teach the angels to do wheelies.’”
The hearse arrived at the church just before 3pm and it was greeted with applause by thousands of people who had been gathering in the square outside the church since the early hours. The square was also filled with balloons and banners bearing Simoncelli’s No. 58.
Beside Simoncelli’s coffin at the altar were two motorcycles — one that he rode to win the 250cc championship in 2008 and another used this season.
Photo: Reuters
The funeral was broadcast live on big screens outside the church and to more than 10,000 people gathered at the nearby Misano Adriatico circuit, as well as on various Italian TV stations.
At the end of the service, seven-time world champion Valentino Rossi revved the engine of Simoncelli’s Honda and then wheeled it out as a tribute to his close friend, to the sound of Vasco Rossi’s Siamo solo noi — Simoncelli’s favorite song.
The coffin was then carried out and laid at the top of the steps of the church to the sounds of applause from the crowd.
“As a believer, but I don’t know in what, I have a theory,” Simoncelli’s girlfriend Kate said. “Marco was a perfect person and perfect people can’t live together with us mortals.”
Simoncelli was a rising star in the sport who, with his trademark mop of curly hair, was beloved by Italy’s motorcycle racing fans.
More than 10,000 fans had lined up in the rain on Wednesday for a public viewing of his coffin in the city theater of his hometown.
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