Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
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CN III ARCHIVES BY LARRY LAWRENCE T he AMA 250 Grand Prix Championship, which at one point was also called AMA Lightweight and AMA Formula Two, was almost always a highly com- petitive championship that saw a variety of winners. The class was a great entrée into professional road racing for many, and nearly all the great American road racers from the 1960s to the 2000s came through AMA 250 Grand Prix at one time or an- other, starting with Dick Mann, Gary Nixon and Cal Rayborn and running through Steve Baker, Kenny Roberts (Senior and Junior), Eddie Lawson, Wayne Rainey, Fred Merkel, Jimmy Filice, John Kocinski, Colin Edwards and Rich Oliver, just to name a few. But perhaps the most competitive 250GP season of all came in 1984. The '84 AMA Formula Two Championship was amazing for its parity. In 13 rounds that season there were nine different winners, winning on three differ- ent brands: Yamaha, Honda and Armstrong. The se- ries that year featured an intriguing blend of primarily young guns with a few veteran riders peppered in the mix. In the end one of the new generations of road racers, a young rider named Donny Greene from Novato, California, broke through to earn his first of three-consecutive championships. The path to that title was one that was full of ups and downs, captivating battles and unexpected win- ners. The '84 series kicked off with the 100-Mile Inter- national Lightweight event at Daytona. This was at the height for foreign rider participation at Daytona and it was no different in the Lightweight race. In addition to the AMA regulars, there was a strong contingent of GP riders and other leading 250GP riders from various countries. There were 28 foreign riders entered in the race from 11 different countries, including notables Graeme McGregor, the Aussie who's scored a pair of World Championship 250 Grand Prix podiums; the German GP standout Martin Wimmer, a GP winner; a young Sito Pons, who won the pole for the race on a Rotax-powered machine called a Cobas and would go on to become a two-time 250GP world champ; and the great Angel Nito, the small displacement-class specialist who would go on that season to earn the 125cc World Champion- ship, his 13th World title. Pons got a strong start from the pole and led the 80-rider field on the first lap. Yamaha's factory rider Wayne Rainey started ninth on the grid but was tearing through the field and was already up to second by the end of the first lap. Rainey was a master on the infield, but Pons had a major top- speed advantage with his Cobas. Rainey would often take the lead, only to be passed by Pons on the banking. It appeared Rainey was going to have a tough time with Pons, but the path was made clear when Pons crashed unhurt on lap seven back at the chicane. From that point Rainey romped to a 12-second victory over McGregor and Wimmer. David Aldana and David Busby rounded out the top five. With most of the top finishers from Daytona off THE 1984 AMA 250 GRAND PRIX SEASON P112 Sam McDonald was one of nine 250GP winners in 1984. PHOTOGRAPHY CYCLE NEWS ARCHIVES