Juan Manuel López Mella (

Lugo Lugo (, ; la, Lucus Augusti) is a city in northwestern Spain in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia. It is the capital of the Lugo (province), province of Lugo. The municipality had a population ...

, 12 April 1965 –

Albacete Albacete (, also , ; ar, ﭐَلبَسِيط, Al-Basīṭ) is a city and municipality in the Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castilla–La Mancha, and capital of the province of Albacete. Lying in the south-ea ...

, 10 May 1995) was a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

professional

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

and

Superbike A sport bike (sports motorcycle, or sports bike) is a motorcycle designed and optimized for speed, acceleration, braking, and cornering on asphalt concrete race tracks and roads. They are mainly designed for performance at the expense of comfor ...

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

racer. Entering international competitions for the first time in 1987, he came third in the 1991 Spanish Superbike race at

Jarama Jarama () is a river in central Spain. It flows north to south, and passes east of Madrid where the El Atazar Dam is built on a tributary, the Lozoya River. It flows into the river Tagus in Aranjuez. The Manzanares is a tributary of the Jarama ...

and was named Spanish Superbike champion in both 1991 and 1992, becoming the highest placed private rider overall in 1993. In 1995, he started riding in the Thunderbike tournament but was killed in a road accident after competing in only three races. His city of birth has named a park that teaches road safety in his honour.

Motorcycling career

Born on 12 April 1965 in

in Galacia, Spain, Juan López Mella started his racing career with motocross but by the age of eighteen had moved to asphalt. After debuting nationally in the Criterium Solo Moto in 1985, he progressed to racing in the World Championships in the 250cc class in 1987. After a season riding a Yamaha, during which he scored no points, he moved to a Honda in 1988; once again he finished outside the championship rankings. In 1989, he raced in the World Motorcycle Championship, coming fortieth at the end of the season. Between 1990 and 1992, he competed in the

Superbike World Championship Superbike World Championship (also known as WorldSBK, SBK, World Superbike, WSB, or WSBK) is a silhouette-class road racing series based on heavily modified production motorcycles, also known as superbike racing. The championship was founded i ...

, finishing with thirty three starts and ninety nine points over the three seasons. During the

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

season, he achieved his sole podium placing when he came third in the Spanish round at

with a time of 40:05.859. He subsequently competed twice in 1992, coming thirteenth both times. He was named Spanish Superbike champion in both 1991 and 1992. In 1992, he entered in the

500 cc class with a

Yamaha YZR500 The Yamaha YZR500 was a for 500cc Grand Prix motorcycle racing, Grand Prix racing motorcycle made by Yamaha Motor Corporation, Yamaha from 1973 through 2002. Racing history The YZR500 was ridden by championship winners Giacomo Agostini (1975 G ...

, riding for his own Lopez Mella Racing Team during the 1993 and 1994 seasons. In 1993, he came twelfth overall, the highest placed amongst the private sponsored riders. During 1994, he replaced

Kevin Schwantz Kevin Schwantz (born June 19, 1964) is an American former professional motorcycle road racer. He was the world champion of the 1993 FIM Road Racing World Championship. Early life Schwantz, whose parents owned a motorcycle shop, learned to ride ...

in the

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team for the

European Grand Prix The European Grand Prix (also known as the Grand Prix of Europe) was a Formula One event that was introduced during the mid-1980s and was held every year from to , except in . During these years, the European Grand Prix was held in a countr ...

Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya () is a motorsport race track in Montmeló, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. With long straights and a variety of corners, the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is seen as an all-rounder circuit. The track has stands ...

. He came thirteenth riding a Suzuki RGV500.

Death and legacy

In 1995, López Mella started the season racing in the Thunderbike Trophy, completing the first race at

Jerez de la Frontera Jerez de la Frontera (), or simply Jerez (), is a Spanish city and municipality in the province of Cádiz in the autonomous community of Andalusia, in southwestern Spain, located midway between the Atlantic Ocean and the Cádiz Mountains. , the ...

in fourth place. However, on the evening of 10 May, while riding with Cristina Blanco Trinidad near

, his motorbike left the road and crashed. An ambulance was called to take him to the hospital in the town but he died before arriving. In his honour, Lugo named a park that is set up to teach road safety in his name.

Career statistics

Grand Prix motorcycle racing

Races by year

(

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

) (Races in bold indicate pole position)

Superbike World Championship

Races by year

(

) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lopez Mella, Juan 1965 births 500cc World Championship riders Sportspeople from Lugo Spanish motorcycle racers 250cc World Championship riders 1995 deaths Superbike World Championship riders