Neil Morrison | September 9, 2023
The MotoGP paddock was in mourning on Saturday after it was confirmed the founder and CEO of IRTA (International Racing Teams Association) Mike Trimby, had passed away at the age of 74.
Trimby was present in the Misano paddock for the San Marino GP, taking minutes on a meeting of the Grand Prix Commission as recently as Friday before he died later that evening.
Having begun his working life as a rider and mechanic of some repute, the Englishman was a continual presence in the Grand Prix paddock in the 1970s before his name was put forward by the top Grand Prix riders of the time to formally represent them in 1982. IRTA was then founded – and fronted – by Mike in 1986.
Mike Trimby spent much of his life in the Grand Prix paddock campaigning for a better deal for riders and teams.
In this position he and wife Irene were fearsome campaigners for improved track safety and a better, fairer situation for riders and teams competing in the World Championship. Before then, the leading riders were in a perpetual battle with track and race promoters for a fair share of gate receipts and tracks with better safety.
As well as tackling appalling track safety in some cases, Trimby campaigned for much improved paddock conditions, where riders and their families would spend race weekends together in camper vans.
IRTA President Herve Poncharal described the Mike of the 1980s in a special press conference on Saturday. “When I was young Mike was a legend. He was the one fighting the authorities, he was the one fighting the local promoters for the good things – for safety first, because that was point number one. But also to have a better paddock. That was how IRTA was created basically.”
IRTA’s creation meant the teams were represented by a single, united body: a fact that made the modernization of the sport easier when Dorna took control of the series in 1992.
In the 1980s, each race organizer set up TV coverage for its own event. Recognizing the importance of having reliable, regular TV coverage of the series, Trimby and IRTA started pushing to take the TV rights off the race organizers and to centralize them under the control of the championship.
This was one of numerous steps recognized by Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta on Saturday. “Mike’s contribution to motorcycle Grand Prix racing is second to none,” he said. “So much of the sport we have today was built by Mike and we thank him for everything he has contributed. The foundations he helped to lay are ones that we will continue to build on.”
Mike remained a stern, popular figure until the end with thousands in the paddock paying their respects at 18:00 on Saturday with a minute’s silence on the start-finish straight.
“To spend as much time in this paddock as he did you have to love this sport a lot,” said Aleix Espargaro. “You will not see me even the half time that he spent here, and I love this sport. Our generation has to be very grateful for what he did. A big hug to Irene and to everyone of IRTA.” Neil Morrison
