1978 Belgian motorcycle Grand Prix

The 1978 Belgian motorcycle Grand Prix was the seventh round of the 1978 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on 2 July 1978 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. These races, along with the Spa 24 Hours touring car race 3 weeks later were the last international major events held on the old 14 kilometer Spa-Francorchamps circuit.

Belgium  1978 Belgian Grand Prix
Race details
Race 7 of 13 races in the
1978 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
Date2 July 1978
Official nameGrand Prix Belgique / Grote Prijs België[1][2][3]
LocationCircuit de Spa-Francorchamps
Course
  • Permanent racing facility
  • 14.100 km (8.761 mi)
500 cc
Pole position
Rider Venezuela Johnny Cecotto
Time 3:48.600
Fastest lap
Rider France Michel Rougerie
Time 3:51.700
Podium
First Netherlands Wil Hartog
Second United States Kenny Roberts
Third United Kingdom Barry Sheene
250 cc
Pole position
Rider South Africa Kork Ballington
Time 4:08.000
Fastest lap
Rider Italy Walter Villa
Time 4:22.400
Podium
First Italy Paolo Pileri
Second Italy Franco Uncini
Third Italy Walter Villa
125 cc
Pole position
Rider Spain Ángel Nieto
Time 4:23.200
Fastest lap
Rider Italy Pierpaolo Bianchi
Spain Ángel Nieto
Time 4:42.700
Podium
First Italy Pierpaolo Bianchi
Second Spain Ángel Nieto
Third Italy Maurizio Massimiani
50 cc
Pole position
Rider Spain Ricardo Tormo
Time 5:12.500
Fastest lap
Rider Spain Ricardo Tormo
Time 5:16.100
Podium
First Spain Ricardo Tormo
Second Italy Eugenio Lazzarini
Third Switzerland Stefan Dörflinger
Sidecar (B2A)
Pole position
Rider West Germany Rolf Steinhausen
Time 4:15.400
Fastest lap
Rider France Alain Michel
Time 5:03.700
Podium
First Switzerland Bruno Holzer
Second France Alain Michel
Third Switzerland Rolf Biland

500 cc classification edit

Pos. No. Rider Team Manufacturer Time/Retired Points
1 15   Wil Hartog Riemersma Racing Suzuki 39'50.400 15
2 2   Kenny Roberts Yamaha Motor Company Yamaha +15.800 12
3 7   Barry Sheene Texaco Heron Team Suzuki Suzuki +18.600 10
4 30   Michel Rougerie Suzuki +21.300 8
5 21   Tepi Länsivuori Suzuki +1'18.900 6
6 8   Takazumi Katayama Sarome & Motul Team Yamaha +1 lap 5
7 22   Marco Lucchinelli Cagiva Corse Suzuki +1 lap 4
8 9   Alex George Suzuki +1 lap 3
9 17   Tom Herron Suzuki +1 lap 2
10 46   Dennis Ireland Suzuki +1 lap 1
11 39   John Woodley Sid Griffiths Racing Suzuki +1 lap
12 38   John Williams Team Appleby Glade Suzuki +1 lap
13 41   Bo Granath Suzuki +1 lap
14 29   Graziano Rossi Team Gallina Nava Olio Fiat Suzuki +1 lap
15 14   Jack Findlay Suzuki +1 lap
16 48   Greg Johnson Suzuki +1 lap
17 45   Hervé Regout Yamaha +1 lap
18 37   Max Wiener Suzuki +1 lap
19 33   Leslie van Breda Suzuki +1 lap
20 36   Gerhard Vogt Bill Smith Racing Suzuki +1 lap
21 ??   Guy Cooremans Suzuki +1 lap
22 ??   Jean-Claude Hogrel Buton Buton +1 lap
Ret   Johnny Cecotto Yamaha Motor Company Yamaha Retired
Ret   Philippe Coulon Marlboro Nava Total Suzuki Retired
Ret   Boet van Dulmen Suzuki Retired
Ret   Virginio Ferrari Team Gallina Nava Olio Fiat Suzuki Retired
Ret   Steve Baker Team Gallina Nava Olio Fiat Suzuki Retired
Ret   Bruno Kneubühler RSS Racing Team Suzuki Retired
Ret   John Newbold Ray Hamblin Motorcycles Suzuki Retired
Ret   Børge Nielsen Suzuki Retired
Ret   Jon Ekerold Suzuki Deutschland Yamaha Retired
Ret   Dick Alblas Suzuki Retired
Ret   Franz Heller Caramba Racing Team Bohme Suzuki Retired
Ret   Franz Rau Kazenmaier Autovermietung Suzuki Retired
Ret   Cees Scheepens Suzuki Retired
Ret   Steve Parrish Suzuki Retired
Sources:[5][6][7]

250 cc classification edit

Pos No. Rider Manufacturer Laps Time Grid Points
1 31   Paolo Pileri Morbidelli 9 40:35.0 15
2 56   Franco Uncini Yamaha 9 +23.1 4 12
3 37   Walter Villa Harley-Davidson 9 +37.6 2 10
4 9   Patrick Fernandez Yamaha 9 +37.8 8 8
5 1   Kork Ballington Kawasaki 9 +1:07.0 1 6
6 21   Mario Lega Morbidelli 9 +1:07.2 3 5
7 22   Anton Mang Kawasaki 9 4
8 36   Vic Soussan Yamaha 9 3
9 20   Pentti Korhonen Yamaha 9 6 2
10 12   Leif Gustafsson Yamaha 9 9 1
11 7   Jon Ekerold Yamaha 9 10
12 48   Etienne Geeraerd Yamaha 9
13 43   Albert Debouny Yamaha 9
14 14   Josef Hage Japol 9
15 29   Pekka Nurmi Yamaha 9 12
16 62   Reino Eskelinen Yamaha 9
17 45   René Delaby Yamaha 9
18 17   Eero Hyvärinen Yamaha 9
19 63   Clive Padgett Yamaha 9
20 3   Kenny Blake Yamaha 9
  John Dodds Yamaha 5
  Kenny Roberts Yamaha 7
  Gregg Hansford Kawasaki 11
38 starters in total, 24 finishers
[5]

125 cc classification edit

Pos No. Rider Manufacturer Laps Time Grid Points
1 3   Pierpaolo Bianchi Minarelli 8 38:12.2 3 15
2 32   Ángel Nieto Minarelli 8 +3.3 1 12
3 30   Maurizio Massimiani Morbidelli 8 +11.1 10 10
4 1   August Auinger Morbidelli 8 +1:29.3 9 8
5 37   Patrick Plisson Morbidelli 8 +1:34.5 7 6
6 26   Eugenio Lazzarini MBA 8 6 5
7 31   Hans Müller Morbidelli 8 5 4
8 4   Rolf Blatter Morbidelli 8 3
9 45   Cees van Dongen Morbidelli 8 2
10 21   Matti Kinnunen Morbidelli 8 1
11 47   Bennie Wilbers Morbidelli 8
12 41   Jean-Claude Selini Morbidelli 8
13 24   Walter Koschine Bender 8 12
14 17   Clive Horton Morbidelli 8
15 6   Enrico Cereda Morbidelli 8
16 22   Bengt Johansson Morbidelli 8
17 10   Yves Dupont Morbidelli 8
18 18   Jan Huberts Morbidelli 7
19 40   Bernd Schneider Bender 7
20 43   Jan Ubels Buton 7
  Harald Bartol Morbidelli 2
  Thierry Espié Motobécane 4
  Stefan Dörflinger Morbidelli 8
  Jean-Louis Guignabodet Morbidelli 11
38 starters in total, 20 finishers
[5]

50 cc classification edit

Pos No. Rider Manufacturer Laps Time Grid Points
1 36   Ricardo Tormo Bultaco 6 31:52.3 1 15
2 19   Eugenio Lazzarini Kreidler 6 +56.1 3 12
3 48   Stefan Dörflinger Kreidler 6 +2:23.2 2 10
4 23   Claudio Lusuardi Bultaco 6 +2:24.6 8
5 21   Peter Looyestein Kreidler 6 +2:32.9 11 6
6 42   Pierre Dumont Kreidler 6 +2:48.7 7 5
7 15   Hagen Klein Kreidler 6 12 4
8 28   Patrick Plisson ABF 6 8 3
9 38   Cees van Dongen Kreidler 6 2
10 35   Theo Timmer Bultaco 6 10 1
11 14   Jacques Hutteau ABF 6
12 26   Wolfgang Müller Kreidler 6 4
13 9   Joaquín Gali Bultaco 6
14 10   Ramón Gali Bultaco 6
15 32   Günter Schirnhofer Kreidler 6
16 4   Daniel Corvi Kreidler 6
17 40   Chris Baert Kreidler 5
18 46   Marcel van der Steene Kreidler 5
19 5   Michel de Poligny Scrab 5
20 47   Dirk van der Donckt Kreidler 5
  Otto Machinek Kreidler 5
  Ingo Emmerich Kreidler 6
  Aldo Pero Kreidler 9
40 starters in total, 24 finishers
[5]

Sidecar classification edit

Pos No. Rider Passenger Manufacturer Laps Time Grid Points
1 12   Bruno Holzer   Karl Meierhans LCR-Yamaha 9 47:50.0 7 15
2 18   Alain Michel   Stu Collins Seymaz-Yamaha 9 +22.7 5 12
3 4   Rolf Biland   Kenny Williams TTM-Yamaha 9 +28.3 3 10
4 32   Rolf Steinhausen   Wolfgang Kalauch Seymaz-Yamaha 9 +2:22.2 1 8
5 11   Bill Hodgkins   John Parkins Windle-Yamaha 9 +3:01.0 6
6 44   Jock Taylor   James Neil Windle-Yamaha 9 5
7 30   Cees Smit   Jan Smit Seymaz-Yamaha 9 4
8 8   Gérard Corbaz   Roland Gabriel Schmid-Yamaha 9 9 3
9 10   Dick Greasley   Gordon Russell Busch-Yamaha 9 6 2
10 26   Siegfried Schauzu   Lorenzo Puzo Busch-Yamaha 9 8 1
11 16   Helmut Luneman   Micha Stockel Gespann-Yamaha 9
12 35   Heinz Thevissen   Lothar Klein HTS-Yamaha 8 +1 lap
13 37   Max Venus   Norbert Bitterman CAT-Yamaha 8 +1 lap
14 7   Boy Brouwer   Jan Oostwouder Coan-Yamaha 8 +1 lap
  Werner Schwärzel   Andreas Huber Fath 2
  Göte Brodin   Per-Erik Wickström Yamaha 4
  Hermann Schmid   Kenny Arthur Schmid-Yamaha 10
30 starters in total, 14 finishers
[5]

References edit

  1. ^ "Alle Grand-Prix uitslagen en bijzonderheden, van 1973 (het jaar dat Jack begon met racen) tot heden". Archive.li. Archived from the original on 25 July 2015. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
  2. ^ Mitchell, Malcolm. "1978 500cc Class (FIM Grand Prix World Championship) Programmes - The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project". Progcovers.com. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  3. ^ Mitchell, Malcolm. "Spa-Francorchamps - The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project". Progcovers.com. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  4. ^ "1978 Belgian MotoGP | Motorsport Database".
  5. ^ a b c d e Coleman, Barry, ed. (March 1979). Motocourse 1978-1979. Hazleton Securities Ltd. p. 103. ISBN 0-905138-06-6.
  6. ^ "1978 Belgian MotoGP - Motor Sport Magazine Database". Motorsportmagazine.com. 1 February 2018. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  7. ^ "BELGIUM GRAND PRIX · 500cc Race Classification 1978". Motogp.com. Retrieved 30 November 2018.


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1978 Dutch TT
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1978 season
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