Giacomo Agostini won 68 Grands Prix in 500 cc and 3 in 54 between 350 (first victory in 1965 at the German GP) and 350 (last in 1976 on the Nürburgring circuit) on MV Agusta and Yamaha.
Eight times World Champion in 500 and seven times in 350, he was on the podium 159 times. Ago also won a Formula 750 round in 1977 at Hockenheim, which was roughly the equivalent of today's World Superbike Championship. To be precise, he has 123 world-class races under his belt, including 122 Grand Prix.
Valentino Rossi has won 114 Grands Prix, including 12 in 125, 14 in 250 and 88 in 500 / MotoGP. His first victory in 125 was obtained at Brno in 1996, in 250 at Assen in 1998, and in 500 at Donington in 2000. He was on the podium a total of 215 times.
For Rossi, the quest for his glorious elder's record proved difficult, firstly because Agostini in his time generally raced in two categories each Grand Prix weekend, in 350 and 500 most of the time . This is how he established another record by winning nineteen Grands Prix in a single season in 1970 in these two engines. Only Mike Hailwood had achieved such a feat in 1966 with 3 victories in the 500, 6 in the 350 and 10 in the 250.
Compared to today, each driver could race in two categories during the same weekend, but there were barely ten Grands Prix each year. The opportunities to run were therefore about as numerous.
Valentino Rossi gradually got closer to Giacomo Agostini's record until 2010, then his performances suffered a halt at Ducati.
For his return to Yamaha, he found his way to the top of the podium once in 2013, then twice in 2014. The machine was launched and Vale progressed in 2015 with 4 victories. This year, there are already 2 while there are 11 Grands Prix remaining.
Beating Agostini's record this season would be a miracle for Rossi, but the Yamaha rider has two and a half years left to achieve it...
