Tributes have been paid to MG Motor UK head of sales and marketing Daniel Gregorious after he lost an ongoing battle with pancreatic cancer.

The brand’s national fleet sales manager, Geraint Isaac, and members of the MG Car Club were among the first to head online to pay tribute to the former Chevrolet, Renault, Kia and PSA Group employee yesterday (May 4).

Isaac said: “Today the MG Motor UK family mourn the untimely passing of our Head of Sales - Daniel Gregorious.

“Another taken too soon and fallen foul to a dreadful disease, which he fought courageously to the end.

“He passed away peacefully yesterday morning with his loving family by his side.

“Personally it was an absolute pleasure having him as a colleague and a boss for the last 18 months.

“I know many will have worked with and known him for much longer.

“RIP Daniel, we will all miss you.”

The 48-year-old, a keen sportsman and Queens Park Rangers football fan, leaves behind a wife and three children.

Taking to twitter, representatives of the MG Car Club said: “It is with sadness that we announce the death of Daniel Gregorious, head of sales and marketing of MG Motor UK whom has passed away.

“Our thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues at MG.”

Speaking to AM today, friend and former work colleague, Craig Cheetham, paid tribute. He said: "Daniel died of pancreatic cancer. The absolute worst kind because when it becomes detectable your chances of survival are remote. He only found out in November when he started getting bad indigestion. 

"On a personal level he was a mate. We worked together through some real challenges back at GM, both professional and personal, and he was a good friend to me as much as a colleague.

"I’m absolutely devastated, especially for his wife and three kids. I know it’s customary to say as much in these circumstances but he was a genuinely lovely guy." 

Gregorious joined MG in January 2018 after an automotive career which saw him hold the roles of head of corporate planning at Group Renault, head of sales at Chevrolet, area manager at Kia and district sales manager for PSA.

AM interviewed the sales and marketing boss at Cars2’s newly-opened MG dealership in Wakefield in early 2020 and heard about his plans to oversee ambitious sales growth with the help fo the brand’s expanding electric vehicle (EV) range.

Speaking to AM at the time, he said: “I’m focused on growing our volumes and establishing a profitable dealer network in a sustainable way.

“I think our EVs can provide us with the ‘scrappage moment’ that Kia and Hyundai experienced a decade ago and I think 1% market share is possible for us.

“That, I see, as a truly exciting prospect.”

Last year, MG Motor UK registrations rose by 41% against the backdrop of a market down 29.4% overall as retailers and OEMs battled the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.