The 1974 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 26th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.
MV Agusta and Phil Read claimed a second successive 500cc crown. It would be the Italian firm's last world championship and their seventeenth 500cc title in a row. [1] Giacomo Agostini switched to the two-stroke Yamahas but was troubled by injuries and mechanical troubles. [1] Suzuki started to get competitive with Barry Sheene and Jack Findlay on four cylinder two-strokes. [1] MV Agusta pulled out of the 350cc class, giving Agostini a free run, taking his fourteenth world title. [1] Walter Villa took over for the deceased Renzo Pasolini and won the 250cc crown giving Harley-Davidson the title after they bought the Aermacchi factory, reworked and renamed the bikes. [1] Kent Andersson won his second championship title in the 125cc class. Kreidler continued to dominate the 50cc class with Dutchman Henk Van Kessel winning the crown. [1]
Safety continued to be an issue with most riders boycotting the rainy German round at the improved Nürburgring Nordschleife as the track had not been fitted with straw bales to accommodate automobile racing on the same day. [1] Thus, rather unknown German riders took all wins. It served as a focal point in the increasingly bitter debate about safety. [1] British rider Billie Nelson died after crashing into the crowd during the 250cc Yugoslavian Grand Prix, injuring several spectators. [2] He died later that night at a hospital. [2]
| Place | Rider | Number | Country | Machine | Points | Wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Phil Read | 1 | United Kingdom | MV Agusta | 82 | 4 |
| 2 |  Franco Bonera | Italy | MV Agusta | 69 | 1 | |
| 3 |  Teuvo Lansivuori | Finland | Yamaha | 67 | 1 | |
| 4 | Giacomo Agostini | 3 | Italy | Yamaha | 47 | 2 |
| 5 |  Jack Findlay | 5 | Australia | Suzuki | 34 | 0 |
| 6 | Barry Sheene | United Kingdom | Suzuki | 30 | 0 | |
| 7 |  Dieter Braun | West Germany | Yamaha | 22 | 0 | |
| 8 | Pentti Korhonen | Finland | Yamaha | 22 | 0 | |
| 9 | Billie Nelson | United Kingdom | Yamaha | 21 | 0 | |
| 10 | Charlie Williams | United Kingdom | Yamaha | 18 | 0 | |
| 11 | John Williams | 18 | ||||
| 12 | Helmut Kassner | 17 | ||||
| 13 | Karl Auer | 17 | ||||
| 14 | Phil Carpenter | 15 | 1 | |||
| 15 | Edmund Czihak | 15 | 1 | |||
| 16 | Michel Rougerie | 14 | ||||
| 17 | Werner Giger | 13 | ||||
| 18 | Tony Rutter | 10 | ||||
| 19 | Walter Kaletsch | 10 | ||||
| 20 | Christian Leon | 9 | ||||
| 21 | Udo Kochanski | 8 | ||||
| 22 | Billie Guthrie | 8 | ||||
| 23 | Patrick Pons | 8 | ||||
| 24 | Paul Cott | 6 | ||||
| 25 | Roberto Gallina | 6 | ||||
| 26 | Victor Palomo | 6 | ||||
| 27 | Alex George | 5 | ||||
| 28 | Chas Mortimer | 4 | ||||
| 29 | Paul Eickelberg | 4 | ||||
| 30 | Pete McKinley | 3 | ||||
| 31 | Selwyn Griffiths | 2 | ||||
| 32 | Philippe Coulon | 2 | ||||
| 33 | R.Jimenez | 2 | ||||
| 34 | Tom Herron | 2 | ||||
| 35 | Jean Paul Boinet | 1 | ||||
| 36 | Geoff Barry | 1 | ||||
| 37 | Philippe Gerard | 1 | ||||
| Place | Rider | Number | Country | Machine | Points | Wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Kent Andersson | 1 | Sweden | Yamaha | 87 | 5 |
| 2 |  Bruno Kneubühler | Switzerland | Yamaha | 63 | 1 | |
| 3 |  Angel Nieto | 7 | Spain | Derbi | 60 | 2 |
| 4 | Otello Buscherini | 6 | Italy | Malanca | 60 | 0 |
| 5 |  Henk van Kessel | Netherlands | Bridgestone | 30 | 0 | |
| 6 |  Thierry Tchernine | France | Yamaha | 25 | 0 | |
| 7 |  Harald Bartol | Austria | Suzuki | 23 | 0 | |
| 8 | Leif Gustafsson | 4 | Sweden | Maico | 23 | 0 |
| 9 | Benjamin Grau | Spain | Derbi | 21 | 1 | |
| 10 | Gert Bender | West Germany | Bender | 20 | 0 | |
| Place | Rider | Number | Country | Machine | Points | Wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Henk van Kessel | 5 | Netherlands | Van Veen Kreidler | 90 | 6 |
| 2 | Herbert Rittberger | West Germany | Kreidler | 65 | 1 | |
| 3 |  Julien van Zeebroeck | Belgium | Kreidler | 59 | 1 | |
| 4 | Gerhard Thurow | 4 | West Germany | Kreidler | 57 | 1 |
| 5 | Rudolf Kunz | 9 | West Germany | Kreidler | 52 | 0 |
| 6 | Ulrich Graf | 7 | West Germany | Kreidler | 44 | 0 |
| 7 | Jan Bruins | Netherlands | Jamathi | 27 | 0 | |
| 8 | Otello Buscherini | 8 | Italy | Malanca | 26 | 0 |
| 9 | Stefan Dörflinger | Switzerland | Kreidler | 25 | 0 | |
| 10 | Jan Huberts | 8 | Netherlands | Van Veen Kreidler | 25 | 0 |
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.
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.
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.
The 1975 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 27th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.
Phillip William Read, was an English professional motorcycle racer. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing from 1961 to 1976. Read is notable for being the first competitor to win world championships in the 125 cc, 250 cc and 500 cc classes. Although he was often overshadowed by his contemporary, Mike Hailwood, he won seven FIM Grand Prix road racing world championships.
Carlo Ubbiali was an Italian nine-time World Champion motorcycle road racer. In the 1950s, he was a dominant force in the smaller classes of Grand Prix motorcycle racing, winning six 125cc and three 250cc world titles.
The 1972 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 24th 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 30 April, with West German Grand Prix and ended with Spanish Grand Prix on 23 September.
The 1965 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 17th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix season. The season consisted of thirteen Grand Prix races in six classes: 500cc, 350cc, 250cc, 125cc, 50cc and Sidecars 500cc. It began on 21 March, with United States Grand Prix and ended with Japanese Grand Prix on October, 24.
The 1966 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 18th 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 8 May, with Spanish Grand Prix and ended with Japanese Grand Prix on 17 October.
The 1976 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 28th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.
The 1973 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 25th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.
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.
The MV Agusta 500cc Three (1965–1973) or MV Agusta Tre was a road racing motorcycle produced by the Italian manufacturer MV Agusta to compete in the 500 cc Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Championship. The motorcycle was introduced in 1966 to compete against the ever competitive Honda racing machines and was a bored out version of MV Agusta's highly successful 350 cc three cylinder. Giacomo Agostini won consecutive world championships in the 500 cc class with this motorbike from 1966 to 1972. In addition, MV Agusta won the Constructors' World Championships from 1967 to 1972. The MV Agusta Tre is considered the most successful racing motorcycle in history.
The Kawasaki H1R was racing motorcycle manufactured by Kawasaki which competed in the 500 cc class of Grand Prix motorcycle racing. Based on the Kawasaki H1 street motorcycle, it was powered by a two stroke, three cylinder engine set across the frame. It was the first multi-cylinder two stroke racing motorcycle to be sold commercially to privateer racing teams.
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.
The MV Agusta 350 6 cilindri was a prototype racing motorcycle built by the Varese company MV Agusta in 1957, for the 350 cc class of the FIM Motorcycle World Championship. The project was resurrected in 1968. Neither version was ever used in a race. The only surviving model is now in the MV Agusta factory museum.
The MV Agusta 250 Bicilindrica was a 250 cc factory racing motorcycle manufactured by the Italian brand MV Agusta from 1957 to 1961. With this machine 11 GPs, 2 Driver Championships and 2 manufacturers World Championships were won.
The MV Agusta 203 Bialbero and MV Agusta 220 Bialbero were Italian factory racing motorcycles made by MV Agusta to compete in the 1955 250 cc World Motorcycle Racing Championship. The machine won three GPs and with it MV Agusta won that year's 250 cc Constructors Championship.
