He was inducted into the American Medical Association Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1998 and the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2003. Nixon suffered a heart attack on July 29, 2011 and died in Baltimore, Maryland on August 5 from complications. He was 70.
He competed at the international level in the 1976 Formula 750 championship, laying claim to the Formula 750 world championship on a modified Kawasaki KR750 until international politics denied him that prize. He last resided in Maryland and participated in vintage motorcycle racing as well as testing motorcycles for the locally produced syndicated public television automotive review program MotorWeek.
