| Malachi Mitchell-Thomas | |
| Birth Date: | 23 September 1995 |
| Death Place: | Coleraine, Northern Ireland |
| Nationality: | English |
Malachi Mitchell-Thomas (23 September 1995 – 14 May 2016) was a motorcycle racer from Blackrod, Greater Manchester.
Mitchell-Thomas started racing in supermoto at the age of 13.[1] He took part in the Simoncelli Foundation Supermoto Charity event, in Italy, at the age of 16.[2]
He started pure road racing back in 2014 at the Isle of Man, in the Southern 100.[3] Mitchell-Thomas made his debut at the Snaefell Mountain Course in the same year, finishing in fourth position at the Manx Grand Prix.[4] He then won the Senior Manx Grand Prix in 2015, aged just 19, setting a new race lap record in the process.[5]
In 2016, Mitchell-Thomas was signed by Cookstown Burrows Engineering Racing to race in the upcoming motorcycling season, a deal that included a participation in the Isle of Man TT.[6] Mitchell-Thomas won three races at the Mid Antrim 150, and finished on the podium at the Cookstown 100 and Tandragee 100.[7] [8] [9] At the 2016 North West 200, he finished in fifth place in the Thursday Supertwin race, and in fourth place in the Saturday Supersport race, a few hours before his death.[10] [11]
Mitchell-Thomas died of injuries received at the North West 200 on 14 May 2016, in a Supertwin race.[12] The 20-year-old crashed his Kawasaki on the approach to Black Hill. The race was immediately red flagged and Mitchell-Thomas was treated by medical staff from the MCUI Medical team but died at the scene. No other riders were involved in the incident. Racing was subsequently abandoned.[13] Around 200 motorcycles and cars were part of an escort for Mitchell-Thomas' funeral. His ashes were scattered by his father Kevin, at the 2016 Isle of Man TT festival.
Mitchell-Thomas was leading the 2016 Duke Road Racing Rankings at the time of his death.