The 1976 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 28th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.
1976 marked the beginning of the era of Suzuki domination with the Japanese firm taking 11 of the first 12 places in the premier class. [1] Angel Nieto would take his fifth world title in the 50cc division, this time aboard a Bultaco. [1] In the 125cc class, it was more of the same with Morbidelli taking another crown with Pier Paolo Bianchi claiming the championship. Walter Villa would claim double world championships in the 250cc and 350cc classes for Harley-Davidson fighting off a strong challenge from defending champion, Johnny Cecotto in the larger class. [1]
Barry Sheene came to the fore with a dominating championship season in the 500cc division, finishing ahead of his Suzuki teammate Teuvo Länsivuori. Newcomer Marco Lucchinelli impressed as well on a Suzuki but injuries curtailed his performance. [1] Pat Hennen became the first American rider to win a 500cc Grand Prix, when he triumphed at the Finnish Grand Prix. [1]
1976 marked the end of an era as it would be the last time the Isle of Man TT would appear on the Grand Prix calendar. [1] Once the most prestigious race of the year, the event had been increasingly boycotted by the top riders. [1] The TT finally succumbed to pressure for increased safety in racing events. [1] The season also marked the end of another era with 15 time world champion Giacomo Agostini winning his last Grand Prix at the season-ending round at the Nürburgring. [1] As Agostini had chosen the MV Agusta for this challenging track, this win was also the last for a 500cc four-stroke engine. [1]
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Place | Rider | Number | Country | Machine | Points | Wins |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Walter Villa | 42 | Italy | Aermacchi Harley-Davidson | 76 | 4 |
2 | Johnny Cecotto | 1 | Venezuela | Yamaha | 65 | 2 |
3 | Chas Mortimer | 6 | United Kingdom | Yamaha | 54 | 1 |
4 | Tom Herron | 9 | United Kingdom | Yamaha | 47 | 0 |
5 | John Dodds | 56 | Australia | Yamaha | 34 | 0 |
6 | Víctor Palomo | Spain | Yamaha | 29 | 0 | |
7 | Takazumi Katayama | Japan | Yamaha | 28 | 0 | |
8 | Bruno Kneubühler | Switzerland | Yamaha | 28 | 0 | |
9 | Olivier Chevallier | France | Yamaha | 27 | 1 | |
10 | Franco Uncini | Italy | Yamaha | 27 | 0 | |
11 | Dieter Braun | 23 | ||||
12 | Kork Ballington | 20 | ||||
13 | Pentti Korhonen | 19 | ||||
14 | Patrick Pons | 18 | ||||
15 | Gianfranco Bonera | 15 | ||||
16 | Giacomo Agostini | 15 | ||||
17 | Tony Rutter | 12 | ||||
18 | Billie Guthrie | 10 | ||||
19 | Gerard Choukroun | 10 | ||||
20 | Alan North | 10 | ||||
21 | Jean-François Baldé | 10 | ||||
22 | Martin Sharpe | 8 | ||||
23 | Leif Gustafsson | 8 | ||||
24 | Boet Van Dulmen | 6 | ||||
25 | John Weeden | 5 | ||||
26 | Patrick Fernandez | 5 | ||||
27 | Paolo Tordi | 5 | ||||
28 | Derek Chatterton | 5 | ||||
29 | Jon Ekerold | 4 | ||||
30 | Neil Tuxworth | 4 | ||||
31 | Philip Bouzanne | 3 | ||||
32 | Karl Auer | 3 | ||||
33 | Jack Findlay | 3 | ||||
34 | Kjell Solberg | 3 | ||||
35 | Bo Granath | 2 | ||||
36 | Rudolf Kunz | 2 | ||||
37 | Claudio Loigo | 1 | ||||
38 | S.McClements | 1 |
Place | Rider | Number | Country | Machine | Points | Wins |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Walter Villa | 1 | Italy | Aermacchi Harley-Davidson | 90 | 7 |
2 | Takazumi Katayama | Japan | Yamaha | 73 | 1 | |
3 | Franco Bonera | Italy | Aermacchi Harley-Davidson | 61 | 1 | |
4 | Tom Herron | United Kingdom | Yamaha | 47 | 1 | |
5 | Pentti Korhonen | Finland | Yamaha | 47 | 0 | |
6 | Dieter Braun | West Germany | Yamaha | 42 | 1 | |
7 | Chas Mortimer | 6 | United Kingdom | Yamaha | 31 | 0 |
8 | Bruno Kneubühler | 9 | Switzerland | Yamaha | 29 | 0 |
9 | Olivier Chevallier | France | Yamaha | 25 | 0 | |
10 | Víctor Palomo | Spain | Yamaha | 25 | 0 | |
11 | John Dodds | 24 | ||||
12 | Patrick Fernandez | 21 | ||||
13 | Kork Ballington | 15 | ||||
14 | Paolo Pileri | 12 | ||||
15 | Jon Ekerold | 10 | ||||
16 | Alan North | 10 | ||||
17 | Tony Rutter | 8 | ||||
18 | Jean-François Baldé | 8 | ||||
19 | Eddie Roberts | 6 | ||||
20 | Gerard Choukroun | 6 | ||||
21 | Franco Uncini | 6 | ||||
22 | Patrick Pons | 6 | ||||
23 | Philip Bouzanne | 6 | ||||
24 | Pekka Nurmi | 5 | ||||
25 | Alex George | 5 | ||||
26 | Boet van Dulmen | 4 | ||||
27 | John Weeden | 4 | ||||
28 | Ian Richards | 3 | ||||
29 | Leif Gustafsson | 3 | ||||
30 | Dennis Casement | 2 | ||||
31 | Jean Claude Hogrel | 2 | ||||
32 | Tapio Virtanen | 2 | ||||
33 | János Drapál | 2 | ||||
32 | Harald Bartol | 1 | ||||
33 | Eero Hyvärinen | 1 | ||||
34 | Niel Tuxworth | 1 |
Place | Rider | Number | Country | Machine | Points | Wins |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Pier Paolo Bianchi | 2 | Italy | Morbidelli | 90 | 7 |
2 | Ángel Nieto | Spain | Bultaco | 67 | 1 | |
3 | Paolo Pileri | 1 | Italy | Morbidelli | 64 | 0 |
4 | Henk van Kessel | 7 | Netherlands | Condor | 46 | 0 |
5 | Anton Mang | West Germany | Morbidelli | 32 | 1 | |
6 | Jean-Louis Guignabodet | 2 | France | Morbidelli | 27 | 0 |
7 | Eugenio Lazzarini | 5 | Italy | Morbidelli | 26 | 0 |
8 | Gert Bender | West Germany | Bender | 25 | 0 | |
9 | Stefan Dörflinger | Switzerland | Morbidelli | 23 | 0 | |
10 | Julien van Zeebroeck | Belgium | Morbidelli | 18 | 0 | |
11 | Xaver Tschannen | 14 | ||||
12 | Walter Koschine | 12 | ||||
13 | Cees van Dongen | 11 | ||||
14 | Otello Buscherini | 10 | ||||
15 | Leif Gustafsson | 10 | ||||
16 | Harald Bartol | 9 | ||||
17 | Hans Müller | 9 | ||||
18 | Horst Seel | 8 | ||||
19 | Enrico Cereda | 7 | ||||
20 | Pierluigi Conforti | 7 | ||||
21 | Lennart Lundgren | 6 | ||||
22 | Per Edward Carlsson | 6 | ||||
23 | Johann Zemsauer | 5 | ||||
24 | Matti Kinnunen | 5 | ||||
25 | Rolf Blatter | 4 | ||||
26 | Luigi Richetti | 4 | ||||
27 | Hans Hummel | 4 | ||||
28 | Peter Frohnmeyer | 3 | ||||
29 | Ermanno Giuliano | 2 | ||||
30 | Auno Hakala | 2 | ||||
31 | Hans Hallberg | 1 | ||||
32 | Lennart Lindell | 1 | ||||
33 | Heinz Schmid | 1 | ||||
34 | P.Cecchini | 1 |
Place | Rider | Number | Country | Machine | Points | Wins |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Ángel Nieto | 1 | Spain | Bultaco | 85 | 5 |
2 | Herbert Rittberger | 5 | West Germany | Kreidler | 76 | 2 |
3 | Ulrich Graf | Switzerland | Kreidler | 69 | 1 | |
4 | Eugenio Lazzarini | 2 | Italy | Morbidelli | 53 | 0 |
5 | Rudolf Kunz | 4 | West Germany | Kreidler | 34 | 0 |
6 | Julien van Zeebroeck | 9 | Belgium | Kreidler | 26 | 1 |
7 | Stefan Dörflinger | 6 | Switzerland | Kreidler | 25 | 0 |
8 | Rolf Blatter | Switzerland | Kreidler | 25 | 0 | |
9 | Hans Hummel | 9 | Austria | Kreidler | 20 | 0 |
10 | Pierre Audry | France | ABF | 15 | 0 | |
11 | Aldo Pero | 13 | ||||
12 | Theo Timmer | 12 | ||||
13 | Engelbert Kip | 12 | ||||
14 | Gerrit Strikker | 9 | ||||
15 | Cees van Dongen | 9 | ||||
16 | Benjamin Laurent | 8 | ||||
17 | Günter Schirnhofer | 7 | ||||
18 | Theo Van Geffen | 6 | ||||
19 | Ricardo Tormo | 5 | ||||
20 | Robert Laver | 5 | ||||
21 | Claudio Lusuardi | 4 | ||||
22 | Yves Le Tourmelin | 4 | ||||
23 | E.Mischiatti | 4 | ||||
24 | B.Stopp | 4 | ||||
25 | Wolfgang Müller | 3 | ||||
26 | Ramon Gali | 3 | ||||
27 | Ermanno Giuliano | 1 |
Barry Steven Frank Sheene was an English professional motorcycle racer. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing and was a two-time world champion, winning consecutive 500cc titles in 1976 and 1977.
Kenneth Leroy Roberts is an American former professional motorcycle racer and racing team owner. In 1978, he became the first American to win a Grand Prix motorcycle racing world championship. He was also a two-time winner of the A.M.A. Grand National Championship. Roberts is one of only four riders in American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) racing history to win the AMA Grand Slam, representing Grand National wins at a mile, half-mile, short-track, TT Steeplechase and road race events.
Franco Uncini is an Italian former professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racing. He was 1982 FIM Road Racing World Champion with Suzuki. He was inducted into the F.I.M. MotoGP Hall of Fame in 2016.
Ángel Nieto Roldán was a Spanish professional Grand Prix motorcycle racer. He was one of the most accomplished motorcycle racers in the history of the sport, winning 13 World Championships and 90 Grand Prix victories in a racing career that spanned twenty-three years from 1964 to 1986, mainly engaged in 50cc, 80cc and 125cc respectively. His total of 90 Grand Prix victories ranks him third only to the 122 by Giacomo Agostini, and the 115 for Valentino Rossi. In 2011, Nieto was named an FIM Legend for his motorcycling achievements.
The 1978 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 30th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.
The 1975 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 27th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.
Pat Hennen is an American former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He is notable for being the first American to win a 500 cc World Championship race, the 1976 500cc Finnish Grand Prix. Competing as a non-factory rider, he finished third overall in the GP World Championship standings that season, only 2 points behind runner-up Tepi Länsivuori and fellow Suzuki factory rider Barry Sheene.
The 1977 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 29th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.
The 1974 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 26th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.
The 1971 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 23rd F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix season. The season consisted of twelve Grand Prix races in six classes: 500cc, 350cc, 250cc, 125cc, 50cc and Sidecars 500cc. It began on 9 May, with Austrian Grand Prix and ended with Spanish Grand Prix on 26 September.
The 1970 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 22nd F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix season. The season consisted of twelve Grand Prix races in six classes: 500cc, 350cc, 250cc, 125cc, 50cc and Sidecars 500cc. It began on 3 May, with West German Grand Prix and ended with Spanish Grand Prix on 27 September.
Walter Villa was an Italian four-time Grand Prix motorcycle road racing world champion. He was known for his quiet, unassuming nature off the bike who became a ruthless competitor once the races began.
Cyril John Findlay was an Australian professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He is noted for having one of the longest racing careers in Grand Prix history spanning 20 years, as well as one of four riders to race in Grand Prix motorcycle racing for 20 years or more. He competed at the highest level despite racing as a privateer - that is, not as a contracted member of a factory team - throughout most of his racing career.
Gianfranco Bonera is an Italian former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. His best year was in 1974 when he won the Nations Grand Prix and finished second to his MV Agusta teammate, Phil Read, in the 500cc world championship. He switched to the 250cc class in 1976, racing for the Harley-Davidson factory racing team on Aermacchi machines rebadged after being purchased by the American firm. He won the 250cc Spanish Grand Prix and finished the season in third place behind his Harley-Davidson teammate, Walter Villa and Yamaha's Takazumi Katayama.
Keith Turner is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer from New Zealand. He competed in the FIM motorcycle Grand Prix world championships from 1967 to 1972. He had his best season in 1971 when he finished the year in second place in the 500cc world championship, behind the defending champion, Giacomo Agostini.
The 1979 Venezuelan motorcycle Grand Prix, the first of 13 rounds of the F.I.M. 1979 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season, was held on 18 March at the San Carlos Circuit. British rider Barry Sheene, world champion in 1976 and 1977, won the 500cc GP by 18 seconds from Italian Virginio Ferrari to make it three successive Venezuelan GPs. Venezuelan racer Carlos Lavado won the 350cc class from Italian Walter Villa and Frenchman Patrick Fernandez.
The MV Agusta 500cc road racers were motorcycles that the manufacturer MV Agusta built and which were used to compete in 500cc Grand Prix motorcycle racing series between 1950 and 1976. 18 500cc world championship titles were achieved with these machines ridden by John Surtees, Gary Hocking, Mike Hailwood, Giacomo Agostini and Phil Read between 1958 and 1974.
The MV Agusta 500 four-cylinder (1973–1976) was a racing motorcycle manufactured by the Italian company MV Agusta, for competing in the 500 cc series, the premier class of the FIM World Motorcycle Championship. With this motorcycle MV Agusta won the 1973 constructor's world champion and Phil Read won the 1973 and 1974 500 cc riders world championships.
The MV Agusta 350 cc racers were motorcycles produced by MV Agusta between 1954 and 1976 and raced in the 350 cc motorcycle GP championships. 10 world titles were achieved by riders John Surtees, Gary Hocking and Giacomo Agostini on these machines.