my mom texted me this before I'd even seen it. she knew way more about him than I did, I just knew the clips that got passed around. still feels like a weird gap now.
Their story
Antonio Nisi was a 34 year old gardener from Ostuni, in the southern Italian province of Brindisi, who was well known locally for his passion for motorsport, in particular the discipline known as gimkana, a timed driving skill competition held on closed circuits. <cite index="1-3">Antonio Nisi, giardiniere di 34 anni…
Antonio Nisi was a 34 year old gardener from Ostuni, in the southern Italian province of Brindisi, who was well known locally for his passion for motorsport, in particular the discipline known as gimkana, a timed driving skill competition held on closed circuits. <cite index="1-3">Antonio Nisi, giardiniere di 34 anni e appassionato di motori, è stato trovato morto all'alba a Ostuni, in provincia di Brindisi.</cite> He had recently won back to back titles, with a tribute from the local racing community recalling that <cite index="4-2">negli ultimi due anni aveva coronato il suo sogno con due vittorie straordinarie, primo assoluto a Ostuni 2024 e primo assoluto a Ostuni 2025</cite>. After his second win he had taken a pause from racing, having sold his car while he thought about a new project to come back stronger.
Nisi was found dead in the early hours of Friday 16 October 2026 on a street in the historic centre of Ostuni, near Piazza della Libertà. <cite index="1-1">Antonio Nisi, 34 anni, è stato trovato morto all'alba vicino a piazza della Libertà</cite>, after <cite index="8-1">alcuni residenti della zona notarono l'uomo riverso a terra e chiamarono i soccorsi</cite>. When paramedics arrived, <cite index="8-1">per il 34enne non c'era ormai più nulla da fare</cite>. During an examination of the body, <cite index="1-2">il medico legale avrebbe individuato sul corpo, sotto il braccio, una ferita compatibile con un colpo di arma da fuoco</cite>, and <cite index="1-1">i carabinieri indagano per omicidio volontario, ma la dinamica della morte non è ancora chiara</cite>. <cite index="5-2">La procura ha aperto un'indagine ed ha disposto il sequestro della salma</cite>, and an autopsy had not yet been carried out as this page was first published.
In the hours after the discovery, investigators widened their search. <cite index="8-5,8-6">Nel corso del pomeriggio sono stati cercati ulteriori indizi anche in alcuni immobili vicini al luogo del ritrovamento, compresa una casa disabitata in via Tenente Spechia</cite>, and <cite index="5-5">al vaglio dei carabinieri anche le immagini delle telecamere di videosorveglianza e le testimonianze di amici e parenti, per ricostruire gli spostamenti e le ultime ore di vita del 34enne</cite>. As of the afternoon of 16 October, no arrests had been reported and the precise cause and circumstances of his death remained unconfirmed, pending the results of the autopsy.
Word of his death spread quickly among the local motorsport community he belonged to. <cite index="7-1">La notizia della morte di Nisi ha raggiunto anche la comunità degli appassionati di motori di cui faceva parte</cite>, and the Club Gimkane PugliaSud IV Championship page <cite index="4-1">lo ha ricordato come un ragazzo sempre sorridente, pieno di forza e di vita</cite>. The same tribute recalled that <cite index="1-4">Nisi aveva perso la madre qualche anno prima e che la menzionava spesso</cite>, adding that that day he would be reunited with her, and it noted that beyond the racing world and his longtime friends, he left behind a son.
At this early stage, little is publicly known about Nisi's life before the events of that morning, including his full family background, education or earlier career. This page will be updated as the investigation and the autopsy results become known, and as more about his life becomes clear.
Biography adapted from News reports and the sources cited on this page; death reported by Il Mattino.

same, my dad called me the second he heard