A FORMER speedway rider has died of mesothelioma just two months after his diagnosis.

Peter 'Bronco' Munday, who rode for Poole and Swindon between 1962 and 1971, spent much of his working life as a builder and machinist.

He was exposed to asbestos frequently during his career, particularly when he worked for Southampton-based construction company Stepnell.

Earlier this year, Mr Munday, who was 79 and still working, became increasingly breathless. He was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a type of cancer that develops in the lining that covers the outer surface of some of the body's organs, in August.

On October 18, he collapsed at the home he shared with his partner Pauline in Ringwood Road, Sopley.

Paramedics were called, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Pirates' archivist Gordon Day lead the tributes to Mr Munday, who was born in Totton.

"Pete was a star performer on the Southern grass tracks before being given his first taste of the shale sport by the Knott family, who booked him for second half outings at Poole midway through the 1962 season," he said.

"His ‘harem scarem’ fence scraping escapades quickly made him a favourite with the fans and earned him the nickname of ‘Bronco', which he lived up to throughout his career in the sport."

At an inquest into Mr Munday's death, an extensive statement he had written about his career when he was first diagnosed was read aloud.

In it, he said he had left school at 15 and worked for various companies. One of his roles involved replacing brakes and clutches of Ruston-Bucyrus groundwork machines. During this work, he was often exposed to asbestos.

During a large construction project in Bransgore in the 1960s, he worked closely with men who cut and laid pipes made by company Turnbull. These pipes were fabricated with asbestos, the inquest heard.

Assistant coroner Debbie Rookes recorded a conclusion of death caused by industrial disease.