Kirsi Kainulainen (born 23 November 1985 in Iisalmi) is a Finnish motorcycle racer.
In 2015, Kainulainen made history by winning the World Championship bronze as the first woman in track motorcycling in the sidecar class with Pekka Päivärinta. [1]
In the 2016 season, she also made history by being the first woman to win a FIM World Championship in motorcycling with men in the same series, winning the 2016 FIM Sidecar World Championship with Pekka Päivärinna on a LCR BMW [2] [3]
In the solo classes Kainulainen has ridden on the track at the Finnish Championship, PM and European Championships in classes 125cc and 600cc. She has also been successful on the ice racing at the national level both in solo in different classes and in the sidecar class with Päivärinta.
In 2018, Kainulainen signed a contract with the Dutch racing team and drove the Ow-cup series in Europe.
In the 2019 season, she returned to the colours of her own Motorsline Kainulainen team and drove the international Alpe Adrian series in Europe. [4] [5]
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.
The Isle of Man TT or Tourist Trophy races are an annual motorcycle racing event run on the Isle of Man in May/June of most years since its inaugural race in 1907. The event is often called one of the most dangerous racing events in the world as many competitors have died.
Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom.
FIM Sidecar World Championship is the international sidecar racing championship. It is the only remaining original FIM road racing championship class that started in 1949.
The German motorcycle Grand Prix, first held in 1925, is a part of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Championship since 1952. The event is due to take place at the Sachsenring until at least 2026.
Motorcycle Grasstrack is a form of track racing which typically, in its current form, takes place on a flat track consisting of two straights and two bends usually constructed in a field. It is one of the oldest types of motorcycle sports in the UK with the first meetings having taken place in the 1920s.
The 1954 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the sixth F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix season. The season consisted of nine Grand Prix races in five classes: 500cc, 350cc, 250cc, 125cc and Sidecars 500cc. It began on 30 May, with French Grand Prix and ended with Spanish Grand Prix on 3 October.
Motorcycle racing is the motorcycle sport of racing motorcycles. Major varieties include motorcycle road racing and off-road racing, both either on circuits or open courses, and track racing. Other categories include hill climbs, drag racing and land speed record trials.
Luigi Taveri was a Swiss professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He competed in the FIM motorcycle Grand Prix world championships from 1954 to 1966. Taveri is notable for being a three-time 125cc road racing world champion. Although he specialised in the smaller engined machines, Taveri is the only competitor to have scored points in six Grand Prix classes: 50cc, 125cc, 250cc, 350cc, 500cc and Sidecars. In 2016, he was named an FIM Legend for his motorcycling achievements.
Track racing is a form of motorcycle racing where teams or individuals race opponents around an unpaved oval track. There are differing variants, with each variant racing on a different surface type.
Husqvarna Motorcycles GmbH is a Swedish-origin Austrian company which designs, engineers, manufactures and distributes motocross, enduro, supermoto and street motorcycles.
Sidecar Speedway is a motorcycle sport involving 4 crews of a rider and a passenger competing over 4 laps on an oval shale surface. Rules are governed by the national speedway federation and are not dissimilar to conventional speedway rules.
Chris Vincent was a British motorcycle sidecar road racer who was very successful in short-circuit (tarmac) racing in the 1960s and early 1970s. He entered Grands Prix using BSA, BMW and URS engines. He also rode solo motorcycles, particularly in the smaller race classes and production-machine categories.
Pekka Päivärinta is a Finnish sidecar motorcycle racer, who with passenger Timo Karttiala, was the 2008 Superside FIM World Sidecar Champion. Päivärinta rode a Suzuki GSXR1000 powered LCR as part of Team Suzuki Finland and is the first Finn to win a world sidecar title. Päivärinta also won the 2010, 2011 and 2013 FIM Sidecar World Championship, with Swiss passenger Adolf Hänni and 2016 with Kirsi Kainulainen on a LCR BMW.
Wasp Motorcycles is a motorcycle and sidecar manufacturer based in Dinton, near Salisbury, England, that specialises in building competition solo and sidecar machines for motocross, trials and sidecar grasstrack, as well as the Wasp 3 Wheel Freedom for disabled riders.
WTR-Ten10 refers to the team partnership between the WTR and Ten10 Racing teams, which is structured on a three-year basis. It was the first team from India to participate in the MotoGP.
Jason Pridmore is a retired American professional motorcycle racer who turned professional in 1990. He last raced professionally in the 2014 FIM World Endurance Championship on a BMW S1000RR for Team Penz 13. His professional career spanned 22 years, during which he won 21 American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) national races 17 of which are Superstock class wins which is second to Scott Russell. Pridmore was the AMA Formula Extreme Championship in 2002, the AMA 750 Supersport Championship in 1997 as well as the FIM Endurance World Championship title in 2003 & 2012 respectively. In addition to his professional racing career Pridmore instructs motorcyclists through his STAR Motorcycle school and JP43 Training programs. Pridmore also spends time as an expert analyst for Bein Sports coverage of the Moto America championships.