In Grands Prix, there is no shortage of French people.
Why not try to draw up a ranking of the ten greatest in history, trying to argue the place of each and paying tribute to everyone? Here is the second part of the top 10, which will stop at the gates of the top 7.
Regarding the selection criteria and honorable mentions,
everything was presented in the first part.
No. 9: Pierre Monneret (1931-2010)
Coming from the large Monneret family, Pierre is the son of Georges and the half-brother of Philippe. We go back in time and land in the 1950s, at the beginning of the motorcycle Grand Prix in the form of a world championship.
Although there is a lack of biographical information on Pierre, his impact seems to have been enormous, as did his talent. He is, with Régis Laconi and other thieves who we will have the opportunity to talk about later, one of the only French winners in the premier category. This legendary victory at the 1954 French GP weighs heavily on his CV. The icing on the cake was that his only other success in 350cc came during the same weekend. A legendary double.
Foolproof consistency, proven by a fourth place in the 500 1956cc championship, propelled the AJS and Gilera rider to ninth place in the standings. A slightly longer career would certainly have put him higher.
No. 8: Jean-Philippe Ruggia (1965-)
He is not the best known French pilot. He's also not one of the most successful and doesn't have the craziest stats. But Jean-Philippe was a precursor. Born in 1965, he appeared on the big stage in 1987, within the legendary Sonauto – Yamaha formation.
His driving style is completely different from the sway of the time. He chooses to put his body outside the motorcycle, like modern pilots. Besides the elbow placed first,
there really is Ruggia in Marc Márquez, at least in style. On the track, Ruggia was a regular rider, and scored several podiums including one in 500cc (at Spa-Francorchamps in 1990).
His career continued until 1996 on different motorcycles, with a notable appearance in 1993. He finished sixth in the 250cc championship on Aprilia, with two victories to his name. This unique style coupled with honorable statistics results in an eighth place in the rankings.
No. 7: Jacques Collot (1923-2003)
Jacques Collot is unknown to the battalion, but not a bad pilot. Speleologist, archaeologist, resistance fighter, mechanic and motorcycle rider… Another era. Photos: Manx70.
Let's dive into the story. This time, we have to turn the clock back even further to discover an absolutely incredible but completely unknown driver these days. This is also why he cannot appear higher in the top 10: The times are not in his favor and it is clear that the competition was not the same.
Collot is a Franc-Comtois who piloted before the appearance of the world championship as we know it today, in 1949. His past as a fierce resistance fighter and veteran diver will be spared but deserves an article in its own right.
Jacques Collot took part in the French speed championships in 1947 before turning to bigger events later. The former apprentice mechanic caused a sensation at the 1955 Genoa Grand Prix, where the latter entered the “zone” : A state of extraordinary concentration which allows you to surpass your physical limits. On Norton, he had no chance on paper against the official MV Agusta and Gilera.
In the final moments of the race, he got the better of Libero Liberati (future 500 1957cc world champion) and won the race in front of an angry crowd. This performance alone, accompanied by all the anecdotes and victories, each one as crazy as the next, places Collot in seventh place.
That's all for the second episode!
See you tomorrow for the revelations of places n°6, 5 and 4.
Cover photo: Yamaha Community.
