A BIKER is fighting for his life after suffering horrific injuries in a crash on his birthday.

The 25-year-old, named locally as Marcus Oakley, was riding an uninsured Yamaha off-road bike in Newby Road, Breightmet, when he was involved in a collision with a Renault Megane Scenic.

Mr Oakley suffered severe injuries to his face and bruising of his brain in the crash.

He is now said to be in a critical, but stable, condition in Salford Royal Hospital.

Neighbours rushed out to help when they heard the smash.

They found Mr Oakley, who was not wearing a helmet, lying in the road with the bike on top of him.

Some ran barefoot through glass, which had smashed out of the car window, to help.

One neighbour, who asked not to be named, said: “I cannot get his face out my mind. I have never seen anything like that.

“He was trying to move his hands. The bike was on top of him and still running. We moved it off and tried to help him.

“He was in the ambulance for ages before they took him to hospital.

“Everyone in Breightmet is praying that he will be okay for the sake of his children.

“I have not seen him on it without a helmet before. It is so dangerous.”

Another neighbour said: “He has lived in this area all his life, so many people know him and we are all hoping he will be okay.”

The car driver was not injured.

PC Mark Potter, of Greater Manchester Police's serious collision investigation unit, said: “We are now investigating this collision so cannot go into details about the full circumstances.

“However, we can say that this again demonstrates the dangers of driving off-road vehicles on the road.

“They are not designed for this and should only ever be used off-road, where the landowner has given permission.

"I also want to remind owners of off-road bikes that if they are going to ride on the road, they need to be insured and have a licence.

“Finally, I would like to appeal to anyone who may have seen this collision to get in touch.”

Anyone with information is asked to call the Serious Collision Investigation unit on 0161 856 4745.