Following the fatal accident involving Marco Simoncelli, Doctor Angel Charte has reorganized the emergency structure and medical care in MotoGP
Following the tragic death of Marco Simoncelli in Sepang in 2011, the medical structure of MotoGP was fundamentally reorganized. Doctor Angel Charte from Spain became the key figure in this project—and remains the proverbial “guardian angel” in the MotoGP paddock to this day.
“I head the medical department at Dexeus University Hospital, which is part of the Quiron Group. I am a specialist in internal medicine and intensive care. I have been involved since 2012 – as a direct result of Marco Simoncelli’s terrible accident in Malaysia.”
“Carmelo Ezpeleta approached me through Dr. Xavier Mir,” Charte recalls in an interview with Motorsport.com Spain.
“Mir is one of the most important specialists who has worked with MotoGP and its riders for many years. I was asked if I could set up a special unit for critically and seriously injured patients.”
“I then presented a completely new concept,” Charte explains in detail: “Two fully functional intensive care units that are ready for action directly at the track. We have around 1,200 to 1,300 crashes per year across the entire World Championship field.”
“Eight to nine of these involve serious or life-threatening injuries. Our goal is to give riders with life-threatening injuries a chance of survival – and we have largely succeeded in doing so over the past 14 years.“
”But it’s not an easy world,“ Charte admits. ”Unfortunately, there have been two fatalities – Luis Salom (2016) and Jason Dupasquier (2021). But the riders always leave the paddock alive. Always,“ Charte emphasizes his central mission.
”It’s different when we arrive at the hospital and the injuries turn out to be incompatible with life. Then, unfortunately, our hands are tied. But from the asphalt to the hospital – we always get them there alive,” he clarifies.
The riders know what they’re getting into
Fortunately, safety is a constant focus. From medical care to the tracks to the riders’ equipment. A rider crashing at over 250 km/h and being tossed around in the gravel – it’s almost impossible for outsiders to comprehend.
“Being a MotoGP rider isn’t something you become overnight. These athletes grow up with the risk. They know exactly what they’re getting into,” says Charte. “They have many years of experience and have mastered every movement down to the last detail.”
“People often ask me if some of these riders are crazy. I always answer the same thing: In all my years, I haven’t met a single crazy rider. I’ve met technical riders, even aggressive ones – but not a single crazy one.“
”They know exactly what they’re doing and how to deal with fear.” Charte himself commutes between the clinic during the week and the race track at the weekend. Two worlds that could hardly be more different.
“The difference between the hospital and MotoGP is that here you never know what to expect when the phone rings or the red flag comes out. I work the same way in both fields.”
“I love my job, I’m still fully committed – and when that’s no longer the case, I’ll stop doing both. I’m a man of action. My life has always been focused on my career. Maybe my family has suffered as a result.“
”But it’s the only thing I like doing – and the only thing I’m really good at. I can’t even change a light bulb… I’m happy with what I do,” admits Charte – an experienced and respected doctor to whom MotoGP owes its medical backbone.
