Wayne Wesley Rainey is an American former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, he won the 500cc World Championship three times and the Daytona 200 once. He was characterized by his smooth, calculating riding style, and for his intense rivalry with compatriot Kevin Schwantz, between 1987 and 1993.
Stanley Michael Bailey Hailwood, was a British professional motorcycle racer and racing driver. He is regarded by many as one of the greatest racers of all time. He competed in the Grand Prix motorcycle world championships from 1958 to 1967 and in Formula One between 1963 and 1974. Hailwood was known as "Mike The Bike" because of his natural riding ability on motorcycles with a range of engine capacities.
Johnny Alberto Cecotto Persello, better known as Johnny Cecotto, is a Venezuelan former professional Grand Prix motorcycle racer and auto racer. He rose to prominence as a teenage prodigy in 1975 when he became the youngest motorcycle road racing world champion at the age of 19. Despite the auspicious beginning to his motorcycle racing career, he suffered numerous injuries and mechanical problems which curtailed his success in motorcycle Grand Prix racing.
Giacomo Agostini is an Italian multi-time world champion Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. Nicknamed Ago, he amassed 122 Grand Prix wins and 15 World Championship titles. Of these, 68 wins and 8 titles came in the 500 cc class, the rest in the 350 cc class. For these achievements obtained over the course of a career spanning 17 years, the AMA described him as "...perhaps the greatest Grand Prix rider of all time". In 2000, Agostini was inducted into the MotoGP Hall of Fame as a MotoGP Legend, while in 2010, he was named an FIM Legend for his motorcycling achievements. He considers himself a "dubious" Roman Catholic.
Kevin Schwantz is an American former professional motorcycle road racer. He was the world champion of the 1993 FIM Road Racing World Championship.
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.
Eddie Lawson is an American former four-time Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Champion. His record of not crashing and consistently finishing in the points earned him the nickname "Steady Eddie".
Randy Mamola is an American former professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer who is a 13-time Premier Class race winner. He was one of the most charismatic Grand Prix motorcycle riders of his generation, becoming a favourite because of his interaction with race fans both on and off the track as well as his aggressive and spirited riding style.
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.
Jarno Karl Keimo Saarinen was a Finnish professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. In the early 1970s, he was considered one of the most promising and talented motorcycle racers of his era until he was killed during the 1973 Nations Grand Prix in Italy. Saarinen's death led to increased demands for better safety conditions for motorcycle racers competing in the world championships. He remains the only Finn to have won a motorcycle road racing world championship. Saarinen was inducted into the F.I.M. MotoGP Hall of Fame in 2009.
Alfonso Pons Ezquerra, better known as Sito Pons, is a Spanish former professional Grand Prix motorcycle racer. He competed in the FIM motorcycle Grand Prix world championships from 1981 to 1991. Pons is notable for winning two consecutive 250cc road racing world championships in 1988 and 1989.
John Kocinski is a retired American Grand Prix motorcycle road racer whose successes include winning the 1990 250cc World Championship, and the 1997 Superbike World Championship title.
Christian Sarron is a French former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer.
Marco Lucchinelli is an Italian former professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He was 1981 FIM Road Racing World Champion with Suzuki. He is a MotoGP Legend.
Yvon Duhamel was a French Canadian professional motorcycle and snowmobile racer. A six-time winner of the White Trophy, the highest award in Canadian motorcycle racing, he was one of the most accomplished motorcycle racers in Canadian motorsports history. Duhamel was a versatile rider competing in numerous motorcycle racing disciplines including; trials, motocross, ice racing, drag racing, flat track racing and most prominently in road racing as a member of the Kawasaki factory racing team. His motorcycle racing career spanned the transition from the 60 horsepower four-stroke motorcycles of the 1960s, to the 100 horsepower two-stroke motorcycles of the 1970s. Even when Duhamel's motorcycle had a top speed advantage, he never slowed to conserve his machine, which led to spectacular crashes or mechanical failures as often as it led to race victories. Duhamel's reputation as a tenacious competitor with an aggressive riding style earned him the respect of other racers and made him popular with racing fans.
Graeme Crosby is a former professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer from New Zealand. A versatile rider, Crosby was equally capable on either four stroke Superbike racers or two stroke Grand Prix racers. He is the only person to have won the Daytona 200, the Imola 200, the Suzuka 8 Hours endurance race, and the Isle of Man TT.
Joan Garriga Vilaresau was a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He was known for his aggressive riding style. Together with Sito Pons, he helped to forge the path for Spanish riders in the World Championship’s premier class.
Jack Middelburg was a Dutch professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. Together with Wil Hartog and Boet van Dulmen, he was part of a contingent of Dutch riders who competed at the highest levels of Grand Prix racing in the late 1970s. Middelburg never earned a factory-sponsored race bike, yet managed to post some impressive results.
Dominique Sarron is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer from France. His best year was in 1986 when he won the Brazilian Grand Prix and finished in third place in the 250cc world championship behind Carlos Lavado and Sito Pons. He won two races in 1988 riding for Honda and ended the season ranked fourth.
Hideo Kanaya was a Japanese professional motorcycle racer and motorcycle racing team manager. He competed in the Grand Prix motorcycle road racing world championships from 1967 to 1975. He dominated Japanese road racing in the early 1970s and was the first Japanese rider to win a world championship 500cc Grand Prix race. Although Kanaya was a competitive racer, he was never allowed to compete in a full season in the world championships as, his main responsibility was as a test rider in Japan.
