Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

~ Motocross GP wlnne:s: 1952·1987 ~ Champ.onsall By Alex Hodgkinson ~ Despite th e absence of the top Americans ~ from races outside the U .S. for most of its r.O history, the ultimate even ts in off-road C motorcycling are still the FIM World ~ Championship MX Series I:: rounds. ,~ Since the introduction of an ~ Open class (an d it was "open" , with no lower displacement lim it though the 500cc upper lim it was there) European Cham p io n sh i p Series in 1952, there have been 83 ti tles fough t o ut main ly in the O ld World wi th occasional trips overseas, and Joel Rob ert with his six ti tles (250cc, 1964-68-69-70 -7 I -72 ) an d Roger DeCoster (500cc, 1971-72-7375-76)are generally considered th e "greatest." Bu t in those 36 years of competition , there have in evitabl y been those u nfortunates who have come so close yet remained so far from the motocrosser's ultimate goal. It occured to me recently that a tab le of G P winners - and there have been 986 in fou r classes over the years - would prove of interest. Surely that would go so me way to dispelling or supporting the idea that th e best man has always won, and ho pefu lly the accompanying lists make interesti n g rea ding. It might well be the case that a list of mo to win ne rs, which wo u ld a lm ost double th e number of results to co u nt, would go even fu rt her, bu t suc h a comp arison would be difficu lt to bui ld up as most GPs in the ear ly years were contested over a single lon g-distance event. As recently as 1973 ca me the FI M decision to award points on the bas is . of rnoto placings rather than the overall, and, al though the name of American GP winners In Europe 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 Jim Pomeroy (Bultaco) .... .... • • . • •• • Belgian 250 GP Marty Smith (Honda) .• ••.••••• ••.•••. Danish 125 GP Brad Lackey (Honda) .• • • ••• •• •.. • •. : . British 500 GP Brad Lackey (Honda) . • • • .. •Austrian & British 500 GPs Brad Lackey (Kawasaki) • • •.. • • •••.• ••• French 500 GP Brad Lackey (Kawasaki) . '. ••• •• ••••• Australian 500 GP Brad Lackey (Suzuki) •• .••..• •• •. • •• • • French 500 GP Brad Lackey (Suzuki) '.-•.. .•• •• •••. . Australian 500 GP Mike Guerra (Husqvarna) ..•.• ••.••• •Spanish 250 GP Johnny O'Mara (Honda) • ••••• ••••. •.• •Swiss 125 GP Donnie Hansen (Honda) • •..• ••.•...• Swedish 250 GP Danny laPorte (Yamaha) • • •• .• • ; French, British, Dutch Russian 250 GPs 1983 Danny La Porte (Yamaha) •.. German & Finnish 250 GPs Jim Gibson (Yamaha) • • • ••••••••••••• Finnish 125 GP 1985 Danny .Chandler (KTM) •• •.•• ••. • ••••• French 500 GP In America . 1974 Tim Hart (Yamaha) • ••• • •••• • •• •.. • • • ••••••. 125 1975 Marty Smith (Honda) •• •..•• • •..•.•••••••.• • 125 1976 Marty Smith (Honda) •••..•. • •..• ••• • ••• • • •• 125 1978 Marty Tripes (Honda) •• •.. •• •. • •• ••.•••• ••• •250 1978 Broc Glover (Yamaha) ••••• •• •. •.••• ••••••... 125 1979 Kent Howerton (Suzuki) • . .•• .. •••••• • • • ••• .• 250 1979 Mark Barnett (Suzuki) •....•• . .•••• ••• •• •• . .• 125 1980 Marty Moates (Yam aha) .. • • ... ••• •••• ••.... •500 1980 Kent Howerton (Suzuki) ...• •..• • • ..•.. •...• •250 1980 Johnny O'Mara (Honda) ••• . ..•• ••.•••.. .••• . 125 1981 Chuck Sun (Honda) • .•. .•• • .•. ••• . •••• • • .•• . 500 1981 Mark Barnett (Suzuki) ... •... •••••. • ••.. • . • •. 125 1982 Danny Chandler (Honda) .. . .. . . .• . ... . . .. ... 500 1983 David Bailey (Honda) . . . .•• . .•• • . • • •••• . . . .• . 250 1984 Broc Glover (Yamaha) .• . •...•••. • . • •• . . . .••. 500 1984 Ron Lechien (Honda) . • • • •.. ••. •.. • •.... • •... 250 1985 David Bailey (Honda) . .. . . •. .. • .. . • •. •..• • • • • 500 1985 Johnny O'Mara (Honda) . . .•.• . . . ••• •• . •• . . . . 250 1986 Rick Johnson (Honda) .•. . . ..•• . : . • ••... •. ... 500 1986 ' Bob Hannah (Suzuki) ... ...• • •..• ..... . • • ... •250 1987 Rick Johnson (Suzuki) ... •• •... • • •.. • •... •.. 250 1987 Eric Kehoe (Suzuki) • • . . . • • • . .•• . .• .•• .. • . .. . 125 GP GP GP GP GP GP GP GP GP GP GP GP GP GP GP GP GP GP ' GP GP GP GP In South America 1986 M icky Dymond (Honda) •• . . . .•• • • • • • Brazilian 125 GP 1987 Rodney Smith (Honda) .. •. • •• . ••• •Argentinian 250 GP Jim Pomeroy's moto win in Spain (1973) was America 's first major achlevement in GP MX racing. It was USA's first GP mote win ever. th e game in the present day sport is b~fore the first non-champion, Kees the acum u lation of points with a safe Van der Ven. seco nd preferable to a risky attempt It is perhaps no major surprise th at to convert that into a win, the overall Dutch m an Van der Ven holds this is still important for the professiona l honor. Since finishing fifth in the rider. Most bonuses, either from 1979 250cc championship, his final p lacings have been 2-3-3-3-3-4-5-3 in sponsors such as Camel or from the h is chosen class which compares well factories themselves, are paid out on the overall, and even the highly paid with the 7-1-2-2-1-2-4-4 -1 of Jobe or modern gladiators have a definite the 3-2-I- I -5-3-3- I of Geboers as the likin g for ending the day at the top two Belgians have established them of the podium. selves as the two winningest riders The basis for the attached tables of the present generation. of winners covers not only the World Van der Ven can perhaps take Championships but also,the first five some heart from the honor of being in each of the 500 and 250cc classes the first rider ever to win Wo rld which were nominally "European, " Championship GPs in all three the two 125cc title chases which held present-day classes, a feat since a similar status and were for riders . achieved also by Erik Geboers, while under 25 years of age, plus the four Malherbe has wins in each but his championships for machines 125cc wins all came in the days of between 501 and 750cc which were "under 25" competition, run from 1966 to 1969 in a belated The other eternal runner-ups are attempt to protect the four-strokes also clear to see. Do u ble figure G P against the onslaught of the twowinners who have never won an FIM strokes. crown are three-ti mes run ner-u p What emerges is the fac t that Gerrit Wolsink , Sylvain Geboers, Robert fu lly deserved his six ti tles wh o was twice runner-up and thrice and DeCoster his five, with only th ird as Robert took the titles, and Andre Ma lherbe, yet another BelTorleif H ansen. T he la tter 's victories gian, sp litting th e pa ir at thehead ca me over a 14-year pe riod, wi th the of the list of the win ningest riders . final wi n coming five seasons aft er in the h istory of the sport. the Swede quit co ntesting th e entire Readin g from the top of the list, series. That decision to stay hom e in championships fell to Rob ert (6), Sweden came after the frustration of Mal herbe (3, plus two 125cc Euro winning five G Ps to champion titles), DeCoster (5), H a llm an (4), Guenady Moiseev's one in 1978. But Mikkola (4), Smith (2), Rah ier (3), H a nsen a lso posted four dou bleFriedrichs (3), Tibblin (3), Jobe (3), DNFs that yearl Lundin (2, plus a 750cc crown ), Several double World Ch ampions Geboers (3), Everts (4), and two each .. have remarkably . few GP wins. for Carlqvist, Bickers and Nilsson Gaston Rahier has more 125cc GP wins than anyone - 28.

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