Eddie Jordan, the former owner of Jordan Grand Prix, has died after a short-lived battle with cancer. Diagnosed a year ago with an aggressive form of the disease, and many believed he would overcome it. However, today’s announcement has shocked the F1 community.

Jordan briefly raced in junior Formula categories from the early to late 1970s before founding an F3 team, which brought him considerable success. Building on that success, he went on to establish Jordan Grand Prix and enter Formula 1.

Jordan Grand Prix gave Michael Schumacher his first taste of F1 at the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix. The team enjoyed moderate mid-field success, securing four race wins and 19 podiums over 15 years. In 2006, Eddie Jordan sold the team for a reported $60 million.

Jordan GP changed hands multiple times before eventually evolving into Aston Martin F1, which remains just a few hundred meters from its original Silverstone base. Like many of his peers, Jordan was a pioneer, embracing the shift as F1 integrated digital software development into its traditionally analog engineering processes.

Eddie Jordan will be remembered in many obituaries as a lively, energetic character—an outspoken yet realistic straight talker. He was the last of the “wheeler-dealer” team owners in a sport that has since become heavily corporatized.