The Honda NSR250 and Honda RS250RW were race motorcycles manufactured by Honda Racing Corporation to race in the 250cc class of the Grand Prix motorcycle World Championship. Both names identified the factory specification bikes entrusted to works teams, while customer teams used the production racerHonda RS250R.
The first bike debuted in 1985 as Honda RS250RW, then from 1986 to 2002 the factory bikes were named NSR250. In 2003 the RS250RW name was resurrected until the demise of the 250cc class.
Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the premier class of motorcycle road racing events held on road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held since the start of the twentieth century and large national events were often given the title Grand Prix. The foundation of the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme as the international governing body for motorcycle sport in 1949 provided the opportunity to coordinate rules and regulations in order that selected events could count towards official World Championships. It is the oldest established motorsport world championship.
Aprilia is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer founded immediately after World War II in Noale, Italy, by Alberto Beggio. The company started as a manufacturer of bicycles and moved on to manufacture scooters and small-capacity motorcycles. In more recent times Aprilia has produced large sportbikes such as the 1,000 cc V-twin RSV Mille and the V4 RSV4.
Daijiro Kato was a Japanese Grand Prix motorcycle road racer, the 2001 250cc world champion, and the 2000 and 2002 Suzuka 8 Hours winner. He died as a result of injuries sustained after a crash during the 2003 Japanese motorcycle Grand Prix at Suzuka Circuit, Japan.
Luca Cadalora is an Italian former professional motorcycle racer who is the 1986 125 cc World Champion, 1991 and 1992 250 cc World Champion and 8-time Premier Class race winner. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing from 1984 to 2000.
Montesa Honda is a subsidiary business of Honda, which assembles several models of motorcycles and bicycles in Barcelona, Spain. It was formed in 1944 by Pere Permanyer and Francesc Xavier "Paco" Bultó. The business was Spanish-owned until entering into an association with Honda.
Frederick Burdette Spencer, sometimes known by the nickname Fast Freddie, is an American former world champion motorcycle racer. Spencer is regarded as one of the greatest motorcycle racers of the early 1980s.
Honda NSR is a two-stroke Grand Prix racing motorcycle built by the Honda Racing Corporation, and also a race replica road motorcycle produced mainly for Asian and European markets.
Gresini Racing is a motorcycle racing team competing in the MotoGP World Championship under the name Gresini Racing MotoGP as a Ducati satellite team, in the Moto2 World Championship as Team Gresini Moto2, and the MotoE World Cup as Felo Gresini MotoE. The team also competes in CIV Moto3.
Makoto Tamada (玉田誠) is a former Japanese professional motorcycle racer currently working as a rider instructor in Suzuka Racing School. He is one of the few riders to win races in both MotoGP and Superbike World Championship.
The Honda NSR500 is a road racing motorcycle created by HRC and debuted in 1984 for the Grand Prix motorcycle racing's 500 cc class. Honda won ten 500cc World Championships with the NSR500 from 1984 to 2002, with six in a row from 1994 to 1999. With more than 100 wins to its credit, the NSR500 is the most dominant force in modern Grand Prix motorcycle racing. The 1989 NSR500 that won Honda's third 500 World Championship with Eddie Lawson exemplifies the overwhelming power, acceleration and raw speed that has always been synonymous with Honda's 500 cc two-stroke V4.
Sébastien Gimbert is a professional motorcycle road racer. He currently competes in the Endurance FIM World Championship aboard a Honda CBR1000RR. His greatest success has come in the Endurance World Championship, and the bulk of his career has been spent on Yamaha YZF-R1 with more recent seasons spent on BMW S1000RR and Honda CBR1000RR motorcycles.
The Sabre V4 was a 500 cc two-stroke motorcycle that competed in the 2001 500 cc World Championship. It utilised a Yamaha YZR500 engine which was housed in a custom made frame.
Lucio Cecchinello is a former professional Italian motorcycle racer and current manager of a motorcycle racing team. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing from 1993 to 2003. In 1996, he founded the LCR Team competing in the 125cc class.
The Honda RS250R was a race motorcycle manufactured by Honda to race in the 250cc class of the Grand Prix motorcycle World Championship. It was conceived as a production racer for customer teams and privateer riders, while factory-supported teams raced the works bikes RS250RW and NSR250.
The Honda NSR250R is a street-legal road-orientated 249cc two stroke sport bike produced by Honda Motor Co., Ltd between 1987 and 1999.
The Aprilia RSV 250 was a race motorcycle manufactured by Aprilia to compete in the Grand Prix motorcycle World Championship until a change of rules ended the engine-class in 2010. From its debut in 1991 it underwent several modifications and upgrades, which culminated in the last version, the RSA 250. Since its inception, the bike won ten World Championships making it one of the most successful racing bikes of its category.
Peter James Lenz was a nationally ranked American amateur motorcycle racer. Born in Winter Park, Florida, he was a four-time international champion, five-time national champion and in 2009 started competing in 125GP racing. He was featured in Roadracing World's 2009 and 2010 Young Guns: North America's Fastest Kids feature.
Juan Bautista Borja is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer from Spain.
Hardwick Racing was a grand-prix motorcycle racing team founded by Australian businessman Jeff Hardwick. The team ran in the world championship with Shell-sponsored Honda motorcycles from 1998 to 2001 and became the first Australian-owned and managed team in the premier class of road racing.
Grand Prix motorcycle racing sponsorship liveries have been used since the late 1960s, replacing the previously used national colours. With sponsors becoming more important with the rising costs in the motorcycle CC classes, many teams wanted to be able to display the logos of their sponsors as clearly as possible.
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