Jules Bianchi: Racing world pays tribute to driver after death at 25

The racing world has reacted with great sadness to the passing of Jules Bianchi, the former Marussia Formula One driver who died on 17 July as a result of head injuries sustained during a crash at the Japanese Grand Prix in October 2014.

The 25-year-old tragically fell foul of the terrible weather conditions caused by Typhoon Phanfone in Suzuka, skidding off the track at turn seven at great speed and colliding with a recovery vehicle that had been dispatched to collect the Sauber of Adrian Sutil from an earlier incident.

Bianchi remained unconscious after the accident and sadly was unable to recover. His family released a statement overnight confirming his death, that read: "Jules fought right to the very end, as he always did, but today his battle came to an end. The pain we feel is immense and indescribable."

Former Marussia teammate Max Chilton tweeted: "No words can describe what his family & the sport have lost. All I can say it was a pleasure knowing & racing you. x"

The Manor Marussia F1 team said: "We are devastated to lose Jules after such a hard-fought battle. It was a privilege to have him race for our team."

Team principal John Booth followed up that message with a longer tribute to Bianchi published on Facebook, which paid homage to his talent and placed the team's thoughts and prayers with the family.

He said: "Words cannot describe the enormous sadness within our team this morning, as we come to terms with losing Jules. He has left an indelible mark on all our lives, and will forever be part of everything we have achieved, and everything we will strive for going forward.

"Jules was a shining talent. He was destined for great things in our sport; success he so richly deserved. He was also a magnificent human being, making a lasting impression on countless people all over the world. They recognised, as did we, that at the same time as being a fiercely motivated racer, he was also an extremely warm, humble and intensely likeable person, who lit up our garage and our lives.

"We are incredibly grateful that we were able to provide Jules with the opportunity to show the world what he could do in a Formula 1 car. We knew we had a very special driver on our hands from the first time he drove our car in pre-season testing in 2013. It has been an honour to be able to consider him our race driver, our teammate, and, of course, our friend.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the wonderful Bianchi family, who have remained so strong for Jules throughout the past nine months. In turn, Jules was an absolute credit to them.

"Finally, we would like to thank everyone who has supported Jules since his accident in Japan last October. Your kindness has been such a source of comfort to his family and to us, his team. We will rely on your continued support over the coming days and months as we race on for Jules."