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on a water·cooled prototype 1982 production Yamaha to assist Hudson's title chance;. Timed practice on Sunday morning found Hudson in his customary pole position. a second in front of the slightly built Dutchman Dinant Zijlstra (Yamaha), Watson and Peter Groeneveld (Honda). but Jobe. circulating intermitte.ntly and with marked apprehension. lay back in 36th slot. co c:J') This put the defending champ officially on the second row of the grid, but space was 'made available' for him to ease on to the front line just before the gate dropped on the gnawing anticipation of both British and Belgian camps. Stanling early leader was Italy's unlikely sand 'lover' Maurizio Dolce (Maico). who burst to the front ahead of Mingels, Groeneveld. Van Mierlo. Watson and Van der Ven. Jobe lay 12th. Hudson a wretched two places further back. The Englishman. looking uncharacteristically wooden and nervous. stalled twice in six laps and still lay 14th as Van der Ven took the lead. Van Mie:rlo followed him through on lap 10 as Dolce faded. the collarbone he broke in Germany still heavily strapped and painful. Jobe. in far greater trouble, was back to 18th after a fleeting attempt to stave off Hudson, the Bristolian at last nosing into the top 10 as Mingels, slowed, his front wheel punctured. and eventually he fmished.11 L't. NeB Hudson _nt ~ to wrest the title from Georges Jobe by two points. World Ch.m~lIship 250cc MX $erles: Rllal roulld Hudson wins World Champion- ship in Dutch thriller By Jack Burnicle Photos by Ron Zuehlkel Sport Graphics APELDOORN, HOLLAND, AUG. 16 The outcome of the 1981 World Championship 250cc MX was eventually decided in a gripping final race in Holland, when 20 Britain's Neil Hudson hurled his 'Yamaha through the field from !10th place on the second lap, to oust 1980 champion and series leader Georges Jobe by the barest margin of two points. Needing at least seventh place to clinch the title, Hudson was grounded by a multiple first turn pile·up. before staging a breathtaking recovery which had the huge Dutch crowd cheering him wildly all the way round the deeply wooded, sandy circuit just out· side Apeldoom. until he was greeted by a jet of champagne from overjoyed Yamaha team manager Heikki Mikkola as he crossed the finishing line. "I wasn't at all nervous and felt finfO before the second race." said the newl: crowned champion afterwards. would have been round the tum in fifth or sixth position. All I remember was seeing a Suzuki go down and the next moment I was down too. Fancy having to sweat like that to get four paltry points!" Almost overshadowed in the tumul· tuous excitement. Holland's twenty· four·year·old sand Supreme Kees Van der Vel! (KTM) had ridden smoothly to a pair of immaculate victories in front of his lean compatriot Henk Van Mierlo, mounted on a factory Suzuki for the day in an unavailing attempt to shore up Jobe's fading hopes. The ailing Belgian, a heavy strapping encasing the elbow he dis· located in Russia the 'previous weekend, bravely tackled both motos in the energy·sapping sand but was unable to survive.and had to pull out though nOt before causing problems for Hudson with some desperate blocking tactics. The Suzuki effort did not end with Jobe's retirement from the second molO, however, as he and team boss Johnny Stijbos lodged a protest immediately after the race, claiming Hudson had received outside assistance when he fell in the woods on the second lap. The protest was eventually flung out after an hour of heated debate by the FIM Jury. chaired for the first time in a real baptism of fire by Dave Nicoll, though the rejoicing in the triumphant Yamaha camp had proceeded undismayedl Hudson's'teammate Dave Watson stayed eighth in the table by placing fifth behind the World Champion elect in the first molO. but crashed heavily out of the second while they were making rapid dual progress through the field. Watson having also been involved in the first tum fracas. "The first rider I recognized on the deck was Neil," said Dave later. "I thought, 'Crickey, I can't run over him: so I had to run over someone else insreadl" Ironically. the melee seemed to have been Slaned by Jean-Paul Mingels, out As Jobe went backwards, he was caught by a galloping Rob Hooper (Maico), enjoying a return to the GP circuit and making good ground after being hit broadside and stopped in the sweeping first bend. "I just daren't do anything to pass Jobe in case I knocked him off," explained a rueful Rob. "He was always either on my line or heading for it and after slowing down and following him for a couple of laps I crashed. Until then I'd felt terrific." He was struck by the luckless Steve Russell. whose Suzuki magneto cover was wiped off and they both retired. Watson. meantime. had forced his way into third place after a fine scrap with Groeneveld. but succumbed at three· quarter distance to the blonde Swede Sven Berggren (Husqvama). having his best ever Grand Prix ride. Then with three laps to go Watson moved over and waved Hudson by, but the maneuver spoiled his concentra tion and he fell. A tired Groeneveld retook fifth, only to buckle on the penultimate lap and crash heavily, breaking a wrist. Hudson could not close the fifty yard gap on Berggren while Watson narrowly held off the tenacious Matti Tarkkonen (Yamaha). The net result was that Hudson had narrowed the gap on Jobe to an exas· perating three points and had it aU to do in the last cliff hanging molO of the series. Seventh place or higher was the order assuming Jobe was once more unable to last out. A protracted argument between Jobe and course officials delayed the already boiling stan to race two after Johnny Wasielewski had shifted his Husky across to allow Jobe onto the far left of the grid. An agonizing wait ensued before the gate dropped with Jobe still there, and he capitalized with a fine fifth place stan behind Van der Ven, Benny Wilken (Maico), Van Mierlo and Mike Guerra (Husqvama). But Hudson. along with Watson, first race crasher Rolf Dieffenbach (Honda), Soren Monensen (KTM) and several others were buried in the first tum shambles, though both Hooper and Russell managed to slide round the carnage. Hudson scrambled frantically back aboard. his handlebars slightly bent and the twistgrip choked with din. On the second lap he misjudged a bend and fell again, the subsequent protest claiming that he received help to reStart after this mishap. The thunderstruck British onlookers waited for many long. tense seconds before Nellie flew back into the arena lying 30th, two places behind Watson. Graham Noyce, at the trackside in support of his friend and great rival, was the one Briton who remained calm, leaning across the ropes and tapping his temple. telling Neil to use his head. "There was a long way to go," explained Graham later, "and there was no reason why, in good conditions and on a good bike, he shouldn't do it. " Jobe, still fifth, was holding up the flying Yamahas of Tarkkonen and Dinant Zijlstra. while Hooper was progressing well and had moved into 11th spot on lap fIVe when the Maico shed its chain. Watson and Hudson were eating up places at the rate of four a lap until on the sixth circuit Watson's back wheel dropped sideways into a hole and he cannoned over the bars. which were bent too much for him to continue in the resulting endo. On the next round Hudson threw himself past Mingels, Hans Maish (Maico) and Dutchmen Schalkwyk and Bloemert, though his progress was briefly impeded on the eighth lap as Jobe, who had fallen in the woods. waited for the Yamaha to appear and rejoined a lap down. Twice he tried to head off Hudson, once causing the Englishman to brake heavily coming out of a fast bend, but after his intended prey had escaped, Georges retired. The crowd, well informed by the course commentary, were shouting and waving the brave Briton on all round the track. On lap nine he reached lIth place, on lap 10 he was ninth, on lap 11 eighth. The British contingent, led by mechanic Bill BuchU and Hooper and Russell. who had crashed without injury, were alternately cheering themselves hoarse and holding their collective breath while Neil was out in the woods. which was most of each lapl Ahead he could see Sven Berggren. who had so crucially beaten him in the first moto. For three nail biting laps he narrowed the gap and then a tremendous roar [rom the crowd told its own story as Hudson erupted into the arena alone! Ahead of all this nerve· tingling excitement Van der Ven and Van Mierlo maintained close company in front of Guerra, but the American came under fierce pressure from a really fired up Tarkkonen in the closing stages of the race, the Finn having received the vital 'Hudson OK' board from his wife Siirpa. Hudson himself strode past Zijlstra into sixth place and closed. unhurriedly now. on a tiring Wilken, but the hard graft was done. The 24-year-old West Countryman crossed the line dre.nched in Heilt1r.i's bubbly and thumping in the air in glee before disappearing beneath scores of frenzied, cheering spectat/?rs. Nellie's dream had finally come true and there was nothing any mere protest could do about it. • Results FINAL ROUND. OVERALL; 1. K_ V... der V... (KTMl: 2. Honk Ven Mierio lSuzl: 3. Mike Guerr. IHuoI: 4. Neil Hud80n IV"",): 5. Matti T.-kkonon IV"",); 6. S_ Borvgren IHuII: 7. 08ve WIlbOn (Vim): 8. 8ennie Wilken IMIIi): 9. Erkki SundllrOm (HuoI: 10. Poul Dec:encIno (Hull. ARST RACE: 1. V... der Ven: 2. V... _ : 3. . - - . : 4. Hudoon: 5. WIlbOn: 6. T.kkonon: 7. G""",,: 8. Decondre: 9. _ : 10, 1..8quove. SECOND RACE: 1. V... der V...: 2. V... MierIo: 3. r;u.",: 4. T _ : 5. Wdken: 6. Hudoon: 7. s - : 8. Zljion: 9. Berwen: 10. I I - . FINAL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP POINT STANDINGS: 1. _l235l: 2. .lobo 12331: 3. V... clerVon 11591: 4. DioIl_ 11 011: 5. K~ 1801: 6. Ci<8T. (77): 7. L8quove llI5l: 8. WIlbOn 1831: 9. Rengolov (56): 10. T_I43l.