Hayden collided with a car while training on his bicycle at Misano Adriatico, and suffered serious head and chest injuries, as well as several fractures.

The 35-year-old was lying in a coma in intensive care at the Bufalini hospital in Cesena.

The pre-race press conference began with the riders, including former team-mates Rossi and Pedrosa, holding a banner reading “Thinking on you, Nicky” (sic).

Rossi led the tributes, saying: “It is very, very bad news. I spoke to a doctor who said the situation is very difficult for Nicky. Nicky was a great rider, a great rival, and specially a really good guy.”

‘Thinking of you Nicky’ Hayden sign, French MotoGP 2017

He wrote on Instagram: “He was one of the best friends I had in the paddock;” adding: “The most beautiful thing I have about him is when he gave his hand to me after the unlucky race of Valencia 2015, on the lap of honour. For him it was his farewell to MotoGP, I had just lost the world [title]. [The] supporting look inside his helmet is one of the few positive memories I have of that day. For Nicky, we’re all with you.”

Other riders echoed his comments and admiration, Marquez highlighting the irony of getting injured on a bicycle after taking so many risks racing a motorcycle, adding that cycling fitness would be safer if conducted on a training cycle in a gym.

After qualifying first and second, both factory Yamaha riders pledged to have the best possible race and dedicate it to Nicky. “Unfortunately it is not very important to Nicky, but it is all we can do,” said Rossi.

Hoped-for news of an improvement in his condition did not come.

Instead, while his mother, brother Tommy, fiancee Jackie Marin and members of his Red Bull Honda Superbike team were at his bedside, medical bulletins said the prognosis remained uncertain.

The 2006 World Champion’s friendly nature and generous spirit made him universally popular in the paddock in his GP years, an environment where intense rivalries and rampant egos make this a rare accomplishment. Nicky arrived in 2003 as a factory Honda rider, won the title in 2006, rode a factory Ducati from 2009 to 2013, and a production Honda in 2014 and 2015. He won three GPs among 28 podiums, then moved to World Superbikes, where he also became a race winner.

Miller with Hayden’s number on his helmet, French MotoGP 2017

His father Earl Hayden, himself not fit enough to travel to Italy, was obliged to issue a statement after Nicky’s death was reported in a fake news item, taking the chance to contradict many other errors in various reports. He told Roadracing World:

* The family HAS NOT issued a statement that Nicky is dead.

* Nicky IS NOT dead, although he is on life support.

* Nicky was riding his bicycle alone, NOT in a group of 14 riders.

* Doctors DID NOT perform surgery on Nicky.

* Nicky WAS NEVER in an induced coma.