Sunday Ride Classic 2022 Expo “Françaises de Grand Prix”: Overview of the Motobécane episode

Let's continue our overview of the great French motorcycle Grand Prix epics. Today, Motobécane exploits in 125cc are in the spotlight. A fabulous story that you can rediscover under the Var sun at Paul Ricard on the occasion of the Sunday Ride Classic June 11-12.

If “Motobécane” means something to you, without even thinking about racing, nothing unusual. The company was founded in 1924 in Pantin and produced machines in quantity under the Motoconfort name in the following decades. Thanks to the motivation of certain people internally, the firm soon agreed to join the world championship in the mid-1970s. It all started with Charles Marandet, a former racing mechanic. Founder of RAI, he equips his frames with Motobécane engines. Éric Offenstadt, at the same time, was also called to develop a racing version in 1974. “Pépé”, the bubbling brain, developed a plethora of different ideas, based on the standard air-cooled twin-cylinder, so that the engineers sometimes have difficulty keeping up. However, liquid cooling will quickly be adopted.

In order to promote the LT road series, Motobécane therefore prepared in 1975 a future entry in the 125cc Grand Prix. To bring a little order and assign someone the engine department, the Pantin company recruited Jean Bidalot in 1976, future architect of Pernod. The latter was not yet the legendary wizard respectfully nicknamed “Bidalot San” by Japanese engineers, but had modest experience in small displacement. Drivers Thierry Espié and Michel Baloche will accompany Bidalot for many years.

Jean is forced to take over the racing department, but also to review previous work on this 125cc, which was not so well born. In cramped workshops and without great resources, the small team makes do with what they have. Following tests and an entry in the 1977 Austrian Grand Prix (penultimate and last place), Jean Bidalot redesigned the project.

Later, Jean, returning from a rather convincing test session, learns the news: everything has stopped. What to do ? Drop everything and work in the design office for the series? The engineer's ambition is greater than that. Bidalot asks to take the machines with him; request accepted. However, the headquarters' decision was not to everyone's liking. Christian Jaulmes (son of the director of the design office), offers to make a certain number of resources available to Bidalot. Among others, a test bench technician, a designer as well as premises.

Still engaged under the name “Motobécane” although the brand no longer has much to do with the program, the genius of Jean Bidalot transforms this quagmire into gold. Even today, it is undoubtedly the best French Grand Prix epic.

One thing leading to another, the 125cc improves and even rises to the level of the best. In 1979, with a new 6-transfer engine and a separate magnesium gearbox, the determined Guy Bertin won a victory in front of his home crowd, at Le Mans, for the last race of the world championship. It is consecration. Sponsored by Ricard then Pernod, history is in the making. 1980 promises to be grandiose.

Bertin carries Bidalot's hopes high. The rival, Pier Paolo Bianchi on MBA, is already a double world champion in the discipline. For Guy, it doesn't matter. The Frenchman does not hesitate to stick together, even if it means falling due to over-commitment. Nieto, on Minarelli, is also a dangerous competitor.

Unfortunately, a significant number of retirements prevented the great Bertin from becoming the first French world champion in Grand Prix. If he beats the Spanish legend, Bianchi, more calculating, wins the championship on experience. A place as vice-world champion with three victories is far from a bad result. However, the main person concerned has a somewhat bitter memory of it, recalling the lack of reliability vis-à-vis the MBA.

Due to relational problems and the time-consuming Pernod program, Bidalot was less present in 1980. Motobécane continued in 1981 but with a different chassis and Jacques Bolle at the helm, without trophies.

These few years full of success will bring Jean Bidalot into the pantheon of French motor sports, and will have allowed Guy Bertin to express himself at the highest level.
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