Road Racing Legend Passes
P
hil Read, the seven-time
Motorcycle Grand Prix World
Champion, died in his sleep
Thursday, October 7. He was 83.
Read earned a forever record
as the first rider in GP history
to win the 125, 250 and 500cc
World Championships. The feat
was not matched again until
2001 with Valentino Rossi. Read
was also the last rider to win the
premier class on a four-stroke
machine in the 500cc Grand Prix
era when he won the 1974 cham-
pionship with MV Agusta.
Read earned 52 Grand Prix
wins en route to one 125, four
250 and two 500cc World titles.
In addition to his GP World
Championships, Read is also
known as one of the true icons
of the Isle of Man TT, having won
on the island eight times. He was
also a top-notch endurance racer
winning the Thruxton 500 endur-
ance race in 1962 and 1963.
Read began road racing at 16
and worked his way through vari-
ous British road racing classes
and made his GP debut in 1961.
He won his first world champi-
onship in the 250cc Grand Prix
class with Yamaha in 1964. It
marked the first 250cc GP cham-
pionship for Yamaha. In 1968 he
won both the 125cc and 250cc
world titles. He won the first of
his pair of premier-class titles in
the 500cc class in 1973. His final
Grand Prix season was 1976.
Read raced in the Daytona
200 three times. His best result
at Daytona International Speed-
way came in 1972 aboard a
Norton.
IN
THE
WIND
P46
Phil Read at the
Sachsenring in 2014 on
the 50th anniversary of his
first world championship
with Yamaha. The 125, 250
and 500cc former World
Champion passed away at
the age of 83.
PHOTO: MOTOGP
