10 things you probably didn't know about Ángel Nieto

Ángel Nieto was one of the most representative faces of Spanish sport. Born in Zamora, Nieto dedicated himself to motorcycling, but his beginnings were not a bed of roses. He worked since he was little and emigrated from city to city with the aim of having a better life and being able to dedicate himself to what he really liked: motorcycles. Madrid and Barcelona were the perfect setting in which a young boy from a very humble family became one of the greats of motorcycling. If you are curious to know more about this Spanish figure, keep reading because in this article we tell you 10 things about Ángel Nieto that you should know.

1. Did you know that Ángel Nieto's relationship with motorcycles began when he was very young?

Ángel Nieto had his first contact with motorcycles when he was barely 10 years old. After moving from his native Zamora to Madrid, Nieto began working as an apprentice in a Vallecas workshop to contribute to the family economy. Later, he moved to Barcelona and started working at the Derbi motorcycle factory, and it was there that he was able to get his first motorcycle, which was second-hand and did not exceed 40 km/h.

2. At what age did Ángel Nieto win his first two Grand Prizes?

In 1968 and at the age of 19, Ángel Nieto managed to convince the Derbi executives to give him a 50 cc motorcycle to compete in the races. That year and without having much experience, Nieto won his first two major competitions, and with them he would begin a career full of success after success that would make him a legend.

3. Did you know that this motorcyclist had a lot of trouble starting the bike and that this put him at a disadvantage?

Despite being one of the best in his field, the truth is that when it came to getting started in the races, Ángel Nieto always had problems. This motorcyclist did not know how to start his motorcycle, so he lost a lot of time compared to the other riders, who overtook him thanks to this mistake. However, the man from Zamora was not intimidated and when he managed to start his machine he made some spectacular comebacks that left no one indifferent.

4.What victories did Ángel Nieto achieve?

Throughout his almost 20-year racing career, this driver managed to get some of the most coveted victories by all. In 1986, Nieto had already managed to obtain six World Championships in the 50 cc class and seven victories in the 125 cc class. As if these data were not important, we must also add to his record the four times he was runner-up in the world, the 23 times he was champion in Spain and the five times he was runner-up in our country. Nieto was undoubtedly a champion like few others, since the figures speak for themselves and that he has managed to get on the podium around 500 times and achieved 90 grand prix only confirms the talent that Nieto had.

5. Did you know that Ángel Nieto “saved” the life of the King?

In the early 1970s, the then-Prince King Juan Carlos bought a car, specifically a Formula 1430. Nieto, who wanted to test it, did it before the King used it, and when taking a curve, the pilot crashed. Faced with this accident, Ángel Nieto apologized for the state in which he left the newly purchased car, to which Juan Carlos de Borbón only thanked him for having “saved his life.From then on, although they were not friends, they did have a very close and cordial relationship, to such an extent that it is said that when the pilot died, King Juan Carlos cried and felt deep sadness upon hearing the news.

6. Did you know that one of Nieto's biggest rivals was also one of his great friends?

Ángel Nieto and the British pilot Barry Sheene were great rivals in the competitions that took place. For Ángel Nieto, Sheene was an incredible person whom he admired, “the Valentino Rossi of that time.” In this way and after meeting in many competitions, both pilots managed to forge a friendship based on how similar they were in many things and in the way they saw life. As Nieto himself recounted, when they were in a race at the Dutch circuit, the drivers were in first and second position and since neither wanted to beat the other, they came to a halt on one occasion, but seeing that the third was already behind them. had reached they had to continue and accelerate.

7. What is the superstition the pilot had?

Ángel Nieto had a great superstition with the number 13, and that is that he never mentioned it, but rather spoke of 12 + 1. This is due to a tragic moment that he starred in his life. On November 13, 1977, he suffered the biggest accident as a motorcyclist, and it is that in a section that lacked security of the Benidorm circuit, Nieto lost control of the brakes of the motorcycle and ran over five people, one of whom lost his leg. Nieto was also left in a very difficult situation as he jumped off the bike because he couldn't control it. Since that time, the pilot has never mentioned that number again, to the point that when he wins his thirteenth prize in 1984, he says that he has achieved 12+1.

8. Which pilots came after Nieto?

With Ángel Nieto, a generation of pilots began that would arrive later. He was the father of fellow pilots Ángel Nieto Jr. and Pablo Nieto, as well as Fonsi Nieto's uncle. In addition, many others outside his family wanted to follow in the footsteps of the successful pilot and new ones emerged such as Pons, Herreros and Pedrosa Lorenzo among others.

9. Do you know the reasons why Ángel Nieto retired?

In 1988 the greatest of the pilots withdrew from the motorcycling tracks since, according to himself, he no longer felt motivated by what he did nor did he have fun with it. In the exact words of Nieto himself, his feeling when running in recent times was this: “when you are thinking of retiring, you lose a second in each lap."However, the motor world would not end for him, because even if he did not continue competing, Nieto began a new career as a sports commentator for TVE.

10. Until the last moment the engine was present in his life

Ángel Nieto died in 2017 at the age of 70 in Ibiza, the place where he had lived for a long time. The cause of death was due to a traffic accident suffered by the motorcycling legend when she was riding her quad. On August 3, he passed away due to a massive cerebral edema from which he could not recover.

Ángel Nieto, pioneer and legend of motorcycling, laid the foundations so that many could come after him. From a humble family and a hard worker since he was little, this pilot knew how to trace a path full of successes in which he left not only his achievements, but also the most valuable lessons as an athlete but also as a person. He is considered the greatest motorcycling legend and an example to follow for many who later wanted to be like him.