Although discreet these days, the English were once at the top of the motorcycle Grand Prix. It was the Anglo-Italian rivalry of the 1950s that launched the world championship in the most beautiful way, well before any media coverage. In 70 years, the country has marked the history of sport in the most beautiful way. Currently, only Italy and Spain are doing better in terms of number of titles. Here we are again with a brand new top 10! It’s time for the rankings.
This episode follows the
fourth part, published yesterday. Find the first part explaining the rules and selection criteria
same here.
N ° 4: Barry Sheene
The decision was hard to make. Sheene ou
Read ? Read ou
Sheene ? Difficult to decide. With “only” two coronations 500 tsp in his bag, Barry nevertheless surpasses the seven-time world champion in the rankings.
We are not going to tell you the story of the legendary No. 7 here, that will be the subject of a future article. To make it short,
Barry Sheene is an icon, the presumed inventor of
V biker, the favorite representative of the attitude “
Continental Circus from the 70s.
This is also why he is in fourth position. The ranking highlights the greatest and not the most successful. Sheene sits in a very closed group, that of the most notable drivers in history. Like Giacomo Agostini, Kenny roberts ou
Valentino Rossi, there was a before and an after
Barry Sheene.
Be careful, don't imagine that this was just a glamorous party animal! Sheene is double 500cc champion 1976/1977 and in style please. Attached to Suzuki for eternity, he had the greatest hours of the team Heron Suzuki UK, already mentioned numerous times in similar articles.
On the other hand, we must not let the aura blind us. The statistics don't matter that much, but they still carry weight. His domination lasted only two years, and he did not have much success in the small categories. Note all the same that he is the only one to have a victory in 50cc and 500cc.
Barry Sheene and Phil Read talking together in 1975. Sheene is rightly considered the last great English driver in the world. We will have to wait until Danny Kent in 2015 for a new world champion title! Photo: Lawson Speedway
We cannot omit his end of career, unworthy of such a champion, or even worse: His rivalry with “King” Kenny Roberts.
To put it simply, the American rookie taught him the lesson three years in a row. Rarely had such a spanking been distributed at this level. For all these reasons, we place Sheene in fourth place, which is already good.
N ° 3: Geoff Duke
The threesome Read/Sheene/Duke was difficult to decide but how could we not highlight the career of the latter. Of course, his name may mean less to you than Sheene's, especially because of the period. In the 1950s, it was difficult to be a star, although…
Geoff is undoubtedly the first big name in the history of motorcycle Grand Prix. A true driving legend, we are in the presence of a six-time world champion, including four in 500cc, on two different brands (Norton
et Gilera) and in just nine years of career.
Duke fully deserves his own article, and that will also be done in a short time. In our opinion, English lies in a rather particular in-between: Too good to be compared to Phil Read et Barry Sheene, but clearly less “big” than the first two all the same.
This versatility, these six victories and his legendary status in
Isle of Man Tourist Trophy is incomparable in history.
The legendary Geoff Duke, at Assen in 1951. Photo: ANEFO
That's all for today ! See you tomorrow for the revelation of the best English driver of all time!
