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Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126486
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Kenny Roberts rode 8 smooth. cooIy celculllted race lit the flnlll round, ....Iy securing World Championship title number three.
World Championship Road Race Series:
Final round
Roberts wins third
title with calculated
GermanGP
perforDlance
By Nick Harris '
Photos by Shigeo Klbiki
NURBURGRING. GERMANY, AUG. 24
As the curtain dropped on the 1980 Grand Prix
season at the torturous Nurburgring circuit,
Kenny Roberts, John' Ekerold and Eugenio
Lazzarini clinched World Championship titles
in a dramatic and appropriate
farewell to the historic 14.mile
German t~ack .
.
.
Roberts third suCCessIve 500cc
'.. 14
World Championship-clinching perfor·
mance was a calculated affair. He finished a professional founh in a race
won by Italian Marco Lucchinelli.
Robens' only championship challenger,
Suzuki's Randy Mamola, dropped to
fifth place with a broken oil seal after
leading for three laps. World "IT For·
mula One Champion Graeme Crosby
showed his obvious liking for the circuit
by finishing second, his best ever GP
placing.
Suzuki's sadness at missing the indio
vidual World Championship was
tempered by their clinching tbe Manu·
facturen Award by just sis points from
Yamaha, their fifth COIIIeCIItM IlKIt'eII
in this CODtl!St'aDa oae wIUcb Yamaha
yerr !Ouch wanted to add to Robfits'
mdJV1dual success.
In the Nurburgring's checkered history rarely can there have been a more
exciting battle than the epic S50cc
race between championship leaders
John Ekerold and Anton Mang. For six
unforgettable laps they fought for the
championship crown smashing the lap
record by over 15 seconds - and the
tears of emotion at the finish conveyed
the popularity of South African
Ekerold's victory among his fellow
competitors.
"Neither of us would give an inch,"
recalled Ekerold. "My bike (Bimota
Yamaha) was faster on top speed but
his (Kawasaki) had better acceJeration.
I just wanted to get out in front and
stay there."
Witb 10 mucb excitement at the
front, hardly anybody ooticed a
supei-b battle
third place iii w'liidi •
ror
Yamaha·mounted Johnny Cecouo,
despite brake problems, fougbt off the
Kawasaki challenge of Jean·Francois
Balde and Gregg Hansford who was
hampered by carburetion troubles.
In the 500cc race, Yamaha's Robens
witb a 14 point lead could adopt a cool
approach as he was safe in the know·
ledge that as long as he finisbed in the
top nine be would remain champion.
Witb Mamola and Lucchinelli steaming from tbe line on their Suzukis. the
World Champion tucked in behind a
battle for. third place between Wil
Hartog and Crosby.
Lucchinelli, desperate for his first
World Championship victory, took the
lead on tbe second lap while country·
man Virginio Ferrari, making bis
debut on a Yamaha·based Cagiva, retired at tbe pits reponing a loss of
power.
Mamola regained the advantage a
lap later at Karussell but tben staned
to drop back with oil over the rear of
the macbine and any chance be bad of
tbe World Championship faded.
"I don't know what broke," explained
Mamola. "There was oil all over tbe
place and I think it must have been a
seal. Anyway at least an American bas
won the title."
Gregg Hansford, makilfg his return
to GP racing, bad a lucky escape on
lap three when the steering damper
broke on his Kawasaki. "I was flat out
in founh wben the damper went," be
recalled. "I just let tbe bike go and
somebow she stayed uprigbt and I
stayed on. It really frigbtened me."
Lucchinelli, witb a new lap record
which will probably stand for
evermore, crossed tbe line with a 20second advantage over Crosby who
gained his best ever GP result.
Hanog was a comfonable third and
there were anxious glances from the
Yatnaha camp until Roberts arrived in
fourth spot to clincb his third conseculive World Championsbip title abead
of rival Mamola.
"Thole guys at the froDt were too
fast today and I'm ~ just to
finish 1JecaUle I don't like tIiia arcuit, "
, •said Ro&erls. .,.. ....,..
•
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