Road racing is a North American term to describe motorsport racing held on a paved road surface. The races can be held either on a closed circuit or on a street circuit utilizing temporarily closed public roads. The objective is to complete a predetermined number of circuit laps in the least amount of time, or to accumulate the most circuit laps within a predetermined time period. Originally, road races were held almost entirely on public roads. However, public safety concerns eventually led to most races being held on purpose-built racing circuits.
The Masaryk circuit or Masarykring, also referred to as the Brno Circuit, refers to two motorsport race tracks located in Brno, Czech Republic. The original street circuit was made up of public roads, and at its longest measured 29.194 km (18.140 mi). In 1949, events such as the Czechoslovakian Grand Prix attracted top teams and drivers. The track is named after the first president of Czechoslovakia, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk. Racing on the old roads ended after 1986, when the new (current) circuit was opened. Since August 2023, the circuit is owned by Shakai.
The Circuit Bremgarten was a 7.280 km (4.524 mi) motorsport race track in Bern, Switzerland, which formerly hosted the Swiss Grand Prix from 1933 to 1954 and the Swiss motorcycle Grand Prix in 1949 and from 1951 until 1954.
Hermann Paul Müller was a German sidecar, motorcycle, and race car driver.
The Sachsenring is a motorsport racing circuit located in Hohenstein-Ernstthal near Chemnitz in Saxony, Germany. Among other events, it features the annual German motorcycle Grand Prix of the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing world championship.
Frederick Lee Frith OBE was a British Grand Prix motorcycle road racing world champion. A former stonemason and later a motor cycle retailer in Grimsby, he was a stylish rider and five times winner of the Isle of Man TT. Frith was one of the few to win TT races before and after the Second World War. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 1950 Birthday Honours.
The Italian motorcycle Grand Prix is a motorcycling event that is part of the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. From 1949 to 1990 the event was known by the Italian: Gran Premio Delle Nazioni. It was one of the original rounds of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing calendar. The race was held exclusively at Monza for the first 23 years of its existence. From 1972 to 1993, the event rotated among several circuits and has been held at the Mugello Circuit since 1994, except 2020 in which the race was cancelled due to the outbreak of COVID-19.
The 1950 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the second F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix season. The season consisted of six Grand Prix races in five classes: 500cc, 350cc, 250cc, 125cc and Sidecars 600cc. It began on 10 June, with Isle of Man TT and ended with Nations Grand Prix on 10 September.
Arthur James Bell was a British motorcycle road racer who became known for his short post-World War II Isle of Man TT career that came to notice with his second-place finish in the 1947 Isle of Man TT on a second-hand 500cc Norton he bought himself on which he led for three of the seven laps.
The Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix is a motorcycling event that is part of the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing season that takes place at Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto outside Jerez de la Frontera in Andalucia. In addition to this event, three other World Championship motorcycling events take place in Spain as of the 2024 season: the Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix, the Aragon motorcycle Grand Prix and the Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix, in the autonomous communities of Catalonia, Aragon and Valencia respectively. Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto is due to host three Grands Prix in 2022, 2023 and 2025.
The Ulster Grand Prix is a (currently) defunct motorcycle road race which took place on the 7.401 mi (11.911 km) Dundrod Circuit made up entirely of closed-off public roads near Belfast, Northern Ireland. Due to the races having the fastest average speed over a single lap of any motorcycle road race, it is the fastest race of its kind in the world. The lap record of 136.415 mph was set by Peter Hickman in the 2019 superbike race, a faster average than the Isle of Man TT lap record, which stands at 136.358mph as of 2024, set also by Peter Hickman.
The British motorcycle Grand Prix is a motorcycling event that is part of the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing season.
Fergus Kenrick Anderson was a British professional motorcycle racer who competed in world championship road racing competitions from 1932 to 1956. He was one of the first British competitors to make his living racing motorcycles on the European continent, most prominently as a member of the Moto Guzzi factory racing team where he was a two-time Grand Prix World Champion.
The Australian motorcycle Grand Prix is a motorcycling event that is part of the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. From 1997 to the present day, it is run at the scenic Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit south-southeast of Melbourne, Victoria. Prior to 1997 the event was held at a number of different venues, most notably Eastern Creek west of Sydney New South Wales and Bathurst in central western New South Wales. The only rider to win the 'premier class' race at multiple venues is five-time World Champion Mick Doohan, Eastern Creek and Phillip Island (1998).
Cecil Charles Sandford was a British professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He competed in the FIM motorcycle Grand Prix world championships from 1950 to 1957. Sandford was a two-time FIM road racing world champion and a two-time winner at the Isle of Man TT.
The Swiss motorcycle Grand Prix was a motorcycling event that was part of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing season from 1949 to 1954.
Opatija Circuit, also known as Preluk Circuit and the Kvarner Circuit, was a motorsport street circuit in Opatija, Croatia. The circuit used the city streets of the seaside resort situated on the Kvarner Gulf between 1931 and 1977. It was known as the "Monaco" of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing circuit because of its dramatic views of the Adriatic Sea.
Ernest William Lyons was a motorcycle racer from Ireland who entered selected Grands Prix. He and Triumph factory employee Fred Clarke modified Triumph Tiger 100s for some races, with Lyons winning the 1946 Manx Grand Prix.
The Circuit Jules Tacheny Mettet is a 2.310 km (1.435 mi) motorsport racing circuit in Mettet, Wallonia (Belgium), 20 km (12 mi) southeast of Charleroi. The circuit was finalized in 2010 near the old street circuit.
Malcolm David Whitworth was a British motorcycle racer who died in a crash at the 1950 350 cc Belgian Grand Prix.
