Formula One driver Jules Bianchi has died after suffering head injuries in a crash in October at the Japanese Grand Prix, his family said Saturday. He was 25.
The Frenchman died Friday evening at a hospital in Nice near his family's home, it said in a statement.
"Jules fought until the very end as he always did, but yesterday, his battle came to an end," the statement said.
Bianchi crashed his Marussia into a recovery vehicle October 5 in Suzuka, Japan. The track was wet at the time, and the recovery vehicle was in the process of removing a Sauber that had crashed a lap earlier at the same spot.
A panel for the motorsport world governing body, the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile, found the crash was caused by several factors, including Bianchi not slowing down sufficiently under double yellow flags.
As a result of the crash, FIA moved up the starting times of five Formula One races this year after the panel recommended that starts should not be less than four hours before sunset or dusk.
Bianchi's racing team, Marussia, also known by its founding name of Manor, also confirmed his death.
Bianchi had been transferred to the hospital in Nice from Japan in November.
