Luis Salom facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Luis Salom |
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Salom at the 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix
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| Nationality | Spanish | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 7 August 1991 Palma, Spain |
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| Died | 3 June 2016 (aged 24) Barcelona, Spain |
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Luis Jaime Salom Horrach (born August 7, 1991 – died June 3, 2016) was a talented Spanish motorcycle racer. He competed in the exciting Moto2 class from 2014 until his death. Luis sadly passed away after an accident during practice at the Circuit de Catalunya in Spain.
At the time of his death, Luis was ranked 10th in the 2016 Moto2 Championship. He had achieved 3 podium finishes in Moto2, including a second-place finish at the 2016 Qatar season opener. Before Moto2, he raced in Moto3, where he won nine races. He finished 2nd in the 2012 championship and 3rd in 2013.
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Luis Salom's Racing Journey
Starting Young: Early Career
Luis Salom was born in Palma de Mallorca, Spain. He began racing motorcycles at just eight years old. He quickly showed his talent, winning the 50 cc Balearic Supermotard championship.
From 2005, he moved up to 125cc championships. He won the Balearic champion title for two years in a row. In 2007, he joined the CEV Buckler championship. That year, he finished seventh overall and earned a podium finish in Catalunya.
Luis also competed in the Red Bull Rookies Cup in 2007. He finished fourth in the championship. He even won a race at Assen and came second at Jerez. In 2008, he continued in the series, winning four of the first five races. He ended up finishing second in the championship that year.
Racing in the 125cc World Championship
Luis Salom made his first Grand Prix appearance in 2009. He raced as a wildcard at the Spanish Grand Prix. Later that year, he joined the championship full-time. In his first 12 races, he scored 21 points. His best result was sixth place at Donington.
For the 2010 season, Salom joined the Lambretta team. After scoring their only point of the season, he moved to Stipa-Molenaar Racing. There, he added 71 more points and had nine top-ten finishes. This helped him finish 12th in the championship. In 2011, he continued to improve, finishing 8th overall with two podiums.
Success in the Moto3 World Championship
Luis Salom achieved his first Grand Prix victory in 2012 at Indianapolis. He won after a close fight with Sandro Cortese and Maverick Viñales. He also won another race at Aragon. He finished the 2012 championship in an impressive second place.
In 2013, he joined Red Bull KTM Ajo. He had a fantastic start to the season, finishing on the podium in the first eight races. This included four wins, and he led the points standings for most of the season. Even after breaking his heel in a crash during qualifying for the Indianapolis Grand Prix, he kept racing.
Despite his injury, he won the next two races at Brno and Silverstone. This helped him extend his lead in the championship. However, his chances for the title were hurt at Motegi. He was involved in a crash that was not his fault. He tried to continue but had to retire after another fall. This allowed his rivals, Maverick Viñales and Álex Rins, to catch up.
At the final race in Valencia, only five points separated the top three riders. Luis was leading, but he crashed out of the race. He rejoined but finished far behind. This meant he ended up third in the final standings. Even though he had the most wins that season, he didn't win the championship.
Moving to the Moto2 World Championship
In 2014, Luis Salom signed with Pons Racing to race in Moto2. He partnered with his former rival, Maverick Viñales. His first season in Moto2 had some challenges. He suffered a broken right arm after a crash at the Catalan Grand Prix.
In 2016, Salom moved to the SAG Racing Team. He started the season strongly, finishing second at the Qatar Grand Prix. This was a great start to what would sadly be his final season.
A Tragic Loss: Luis Salom's Death
On June 3, 2016, during a practice session for the 2016 Catalan Moto2 Grand Prix, Luis Salom had a serious accident. He crashed at Turn 13, a corner called Europcar. The accident was not caught by the main MotoGP cameras, but a security camera nearby recorded it. His bike hit the safety barrier and bounced up. Luis slid underneath, putting him directly in the path of his crashing bike.
Emergency teams quickly helped Luis. He was taken to Hospital General de Catalunya, but sadly, he passed away during surgery due to his injuries.
Following this tragic event, the race organizers made immediate changes to the track. They used a different layout, normally used by Formula One cars. This change helped to reduce speeds in the area where the accident happened. Luis Salom's death was the first during a world championship race weekend since Marco Simoncelli's fatal crash in 2011.
Later, more changes were made to the track to improve safety for motorcycles. An investigation into the accident showed that Luis had applied his brakes later than usual on that lap. This was to keep his speed up for the next corner. When he hit a bump in the track while still braking, it caused his front tire to lose grip, leading to the crash.
As a tribute to Luis Salom, his racing number, #39, was retired from the Moto2 class. This means no other rider in Moto2 will use that number.
Luis Salom's Career Highlights
Luis Salom had a remarkable career. He competed in 118 Grand Prix races. He achieved 9 wins and stood on the podium 25 times. He also earned 4 pole positions and recorded the fastest lap 7 times. In total, he scored 927 points during his career.
- 125cc Class (2009–2011):
- Races: 43
- Podiums: 2
- Total Points: 209
- Moto3 Class (2012–2013):
- Races: 34
- Wins: 9
- Podiums: 20
- Pole Positions: 4
- Fastest Laps: 6
- Total Points: 516
- Best Championship Finish: 2nd (2012)
- Moto2 Class (2014–2016):
- Races: 41
- Podiums: 3
- Fastest Laps: 1
- Total Points: 202
- Best Championship Finish: 8th (2014)
See also
In Spanish: Luis Salom para niños
