53 years of 500 GP's comes to an end.
The 500cc World Championship bowed out in Rio after a 53 year history. Next year the introduction of the four-strokes spells the end of the 500cc maximum capacity, which started, with the birth of Grand Prix racing in 1949.
A total of 580 500cc Grands Prix have taken place since they started with the 1949 Senior TT race in the Isle of Man which was won by British rider Harold Daniel, riding a Norton.
The 500cc World Championship bowed out in Rio after a 53 year history. Next year the introduction of the four-strokes spells the end of the 500cc maximum capacity, which started, with the birth of Grand Prix racing in 1949.
A total of 580 500cc Grands Prix have taken place since they started with the 1949 Senior TT race in the Isle of Man which was won by British rider Harold Daniel, riding a Norton.
Ninety riders have won 500cc Grands Prix with a staggering 42 riders scoring just one victory while the West Honda Pons star Alex Barros has secured most point-scoring finishes with 128.
British rider Les Graham was the oldest winner in the 500cc Championship. He was 37 when he won the title in 1949, while 21-year-old Freddie Spencer was the youngest in 1983.
The fastest ever 500cc Grand Prix was at Spa Francorchamps in Belgium in 1977. British rider Barry Sheene (pictured) won the race, riding a Suzuki at an average speed of 217kph!
The unluckiest rider in the Championship is American Randy Mamola, now a commentator with Eurosport. He won 13 Grands Prix but never won a title, finishing runner-up four times.
Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
