A banned driver who was in his girlfriend’s Range Rover Evoque drove at “breathtakingly fast speeds” on Yorkshire roads before losing control of the car and crashing, killing his passenger. 

Joshua Hawksworth, 32, treated the road like his “own private racetrack”, driving at 104mph and killing 23-year-old Connor Machon.

Mr Hawksworth admitted to Hull Crown Court that he caused Mr Machon’s death by dangerous driving on July 24, 2022. He had two previous convictions for dangerous driving and was caught driving while disqualified even after the fatal crash.

Speed-obsessed Hawksworth, from Bridlington, was jailed for 12 years and banned from driving for 10 years.

Prosecutor, James Lake, said that Hawksworth and Mr Machon grew up together in Bridlington and, despite the age gap, became good friends. The accident happened in the evening when Hawksworth was driving his girlfriend’s black Range Rover Evoque on a straight section of the B1253.

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Hawksworth lost control on a slight right-hand bend, which was slightly uphill and had a slight crown in the centre. The Range Rover left the road on the driver’s side and hit a large tree 100 metres after the bend. Mr Machon, the front-seat passenger, was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.

As reported in Hull Live, the driver suffered serious injuries and was airlifted after the crash. He was in hospital for three weeks.

Hawksworth was on licence at the time after a previous prison sentence and he was on bail for a suspected theft. He had convictions for 20 previous offences, including dishonesty and violence, and a significant number for driving matters, including taking a vehicle without consent and having no insurance in May 2013.

He was jailed for two years and eight months in November 2020 for offences including driving while disqualified.

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Judge, Mark Bury, told Hawksworth: “You were driving wildly in excess of the speed limit, which at that stage was 60mph. If you were indeed devastated by what happened, you would have been nowhere near a car. You seem to think that the rules of the road don’t apply to you and you can drive when you want at the speed you want.”

He added: “You used the road as your own private racetrack and drove at breathtakingly fast speeds.You took a deliberate decision to ignore the rules of the road. You think that the laws relating to driving don’t apply to you.”

The judge firmly added Mr Hawksworth should not have been behind the wheel.

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