William Raymond “Ray” Amm from Rhodesia on his Norton – the daring multiple Grand Prix winner and two-time world champion was only 27 years old. Here at a race in Germany in 1954, almost a year before his death.

In memory of Ray Amm, who died in an accident on April 11, 1955

The man’s real name was William Raymond Amm, who sacrificed his life on April 11, 1955, in Imola to love racing. He came from Rhodesia, today’s Zimbabwe in Southern Africa, and was a racer with body and soul. One year before he was runner-up in the 350cc and 500cc World Championship on Norton and the 1955 season should bring him the final breakthrough. In 1954, he had won four races, whereby the 500cc victory at the Ulster GP was later canceled due to the crash due to rain. In the absence of a sufficient number of rounds, which was prescribed by the regulations, this decision was made at the FIM Autumn Congress in September 1954.

At first glance, for some connoisseurs of the matter, an MV Agusta with the characteristic double camshaft cylinder head, but it is the 4-cylinder Gilera from world champion Umberto Masetti. One of his opponents died in his home country in April 1955.
Dieses Bild hat ein leeres Alt-Attribut. Der Dateiname ist grafik-155.png
The three-time TT winner Ray Amm was one of the most fearless drivers of his time and was known in England for his driving style and sometimes even criticized. When asked about this, he would always reply: “I grew up in a saddle, and it wasn’t that of a horse”.
Photographed by us from the hill within the Rivazza double curve in the direction of the start finish. Except for the pit area on the right in the picture, not like a typical racetrack and a park in the background with tennis facilities and a small zoo in the woods.

The fateful crash in the Curva Rivazza
Ray Amm was one of the favorites in the 350 cc race at the Autodromo in Imola. But fate wanted it different that day. When he took part in the international “Conchiglia d’Oro” (Shell Gold Cup) race in Imola in preparation for the then 8-lap world championship. As a freshly minted MV Agusta works driver, the 27-year-old crashed in the Curva Rivazza and lost his helmet. The Rhodesian had no chance and died of serious injuries while being transported to the hospital. William Raymond Amm was a fearless driver. He had put the name of the country at the forefront of the sporting world and had become one of the most famous sons of Rhodesia. It had triggered a boom during his lifetime, which attracted such successful racing drivers as Gary Hocking with 2 world championship titles and Jim Redman with their 6 as successors to Europe.

The Rivazza curve we photographed 65 years later on the Imola permanent circuit. In the middle the first corner and on the left the second corner, which is now driven like a curve.
Like almost all the drivers at the time, Ray Amm was also a technically well-versed man and always meticulously taking care of the preparation of his machine. In the early post-war decades and also before World War II, a fall was often synonymous with certain death.
The sketch of the Autodromo Dino e Enzo Ferrari in Imola. On the left in the picture the double curve Rivazza before it goes to the start-finish. Today’s chicane with turns 16 and 17 did not exist back then. Turn 4, named Tamburello, gained tragic fame due to the tragic accident of Formula 1 driver Ayrton Senna.

His nickname in Germany: The Angel of Death

Up until his death, Amm had only suffered two serious injuries on the route. In 1952, Amm broke his leg, but that did not prevent him from participating in the Nations GP in Italy and winning the race. Notabene with his leg in a cast. He fell in 1953 at the German Grand Prix on the famous Solitude near Stuttgart and then spent a month in the local hospital with a back injury. It crashed in Aintree, England in 1954 and then recovered for about a month at Geoff Duke’s house in Southport, near Liverpool.

Amm, third from the top in a program booklet for an English race, listed as a works-driver for Norton. In the 500 cc race he was second, 5 seconds behind Geoff Duke (Gilera).
Ray Amm (left) with Norton team-mate Ken Kavanagh from Australia after her double victory at the Tourist Trophy in 1953. It was the Rhodesian’s second Grand Prix victory in the 350cc class of his career.

Ray Amm’s successes in Grand Prix sport

A route sketch of the TT from the time of Ray Amm, who entered the history books of the Isle of Man as a three-time winner.
After the start of the 500cc race on the Solitude in Baden-Württemberg (Germany) with Ray Amm on Norton with the number 17 behind the leader “Dickie” Dale from England on MV Agusta. He switched to Moto Guzzi for the 1955 season and the Rhodesian took his place at MV, but had a fatal accident in Imola before the start of the World Cup.
Tire advertising from the Solitude race program in Germany – on the famous track near the castle near Stuttgart, Ray Amm was one of the outstanding drivers with a win and a second place in the two largest classes in 1954. For more about previous drivers and years see our constantly growing and richly illustrated history.
Ray Amm (left) on the road with a short break – in the typical way the drivers were driving across Europe back then. There was a willingness to help among the competitors that is absolutely unthinkable today. Anyone who had problems with their machine received immediate support, even from their most stubborn opponents. Driving such a vehicle to races in Spain at the time was an adventure in itself.

The dismay after Amm’s fatal accident was great

Among opponents, racing fans and of course especially in his hometown of Rhodesia, the dismay was great when the news of Ray’s death made the rounds. The following is an almost half-page report from a German motor magazine about the beloved and fast-paced Rhodesian who was feared by his opponents on the route. Here, too, Amm’s driving style was presented as very daring, but above all his open and helpful manner was emphasized. Including the report of a French magazine and, as the third time report from that time, an article with the testimony of his wife, who fortunately did not have to watch the accident.

A report with the testimony of his shocked father about the fatal accident of Ray Amm.