Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the premier championship of motorcycle road racing, which has been divided into three classes since 1990: 125cc, 250cc and 500cc. Former classes that have been discontinued include 350cc, 50cc/80cc and Sidecar.[1] 250cc is the intermediate category; the 250cc refers to the size of the engines of the motorcycles that race in that class. The engines have twin cylinders, as opposed to the four cylinders used in 500cc/MotoGP.[2] The Grand Prix Road-Racing World Championship was established in 1949 by the sport's governing body, the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM), and is the oldest motorsport World Championship.[2] The 250cc class was replaced in 2010 by a new class called Moto2. The 250cc engines were replaced by 600cc engines, which were supplied by Honda to all teams.[3]
Each season consists of 12 to 18 Grands Prix contested on closed circuits, as opposed to public roads. Points earned in these events count toward the riders' and constructors' world championships. The rider's and constructor's championship are separate championships, but are based on the same point system. The number of points awarded at the end of each race to the top 15 qualifying riders depends on their placement. Points received by each finisher, from first 1st place to 15th place: 25, 20, 16, 13, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Historically, there have been several points systems.[4] Results from all current Grands Prix count towards the championships; in the past, only a certain number of results were counted.[5]
Phil Read and Max Biaggi have won the most championships, with four each. Dani Pedrosa is the youngest to win the championship; he was 19 years and 18 days old when he won the championship in 2004.[6] Italian riders have won the most championships; 13 riders have won a total of 22 championships. Riders from Great Britain have won the second most; four riders have won a total of nine championships. Germans have won the third most, as four riders have won a total of seven championships. Bruno Ruffo won the inaugural championship in 1949. Hiroshi Aoyama was the last rider to win the 250cc championship in 2009. Toni Elías was the first champion of the Moto2 category.[7] Ai Ogura is the current champion; he won the 2024 Moto2 World Championship.
Champions
edit| * | Champion also won 500cc Championship in that season |
| † | Champion also won 350cc Championship in that season |
| ‡ | Champion also won 125cc Championship in that season |
| — | Indicates information is not available |
- The "Season" column refers to the season the competition was held, and wikilinks to the article about that season.
- The "Margin" column refers to the margin of points by which the winner defeated the runner-up.
By season
edit* Season still in progress
Multiple champions
edit| Rider | Total | Seasons |
|---|---|---|
 Phil Read
|
4 | 1964, 1965, 1968, 1971 |
 Max Biaggi
|
4 | 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997 |
| Carlo Ubbiali
|
3 | 1956, 1959, 1960 |
| Mike Hailwood
|
3 | 1961, 1966, 1967 |
| Walter Villa
|
3 | 1974, 1975, 1976 |
 Anton Mang
|
3 | 1980, 1981, 1987 |
| Bruno Ruffo
|
2 | 1949, 1951 |
| Werner Haas
|
2 | 1953, 1954 |
 Jim Redman
|
2 | 1962, 1963 |
 Kork Ballington
|
2 | 1978, 1979 |
 Carlos Lavado
|
2 | 1983, 1986 |
 Sito Pons
|
2 | 1988, 1989 |
| Luca Cadalora
|
2 | 1991, 1992 |
| Dani Pedrosa
|
2 | 2004, 2005 |
| Jorge Lorenzo
|
2 | 2006, 2007 |
 Johann Zarco
|
2 | 2015, 2016 |
By constructor
edit| Constructor | Total |
|---|---|
 Honda
|
16 |
| Yamaha
|
14 |
| Kalex
|
12 |
| Aprilia
|
9 |
| MV Agusta
|
4 |
| Kawasaki
|
4 |
| NSU
|
3 |
 Harley-Davidson
|
3 |
| Moto Guzzi
|
3 |
| Benelli
|
2 |
| Mondial
|
1 |
| Morbidelli
|
1 |
| Gilera
|
1 |
| Moriwaki
|
1 |
 Suter
|
1 |
| Boscoscuro
|
1 |
By nationality
edit| Nationality | Riders | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Italy
|
16 | 25 |
| Spain
|
9 | 12 |
| United Kingdom
|
4 | 9 |
| Germany
|
5 | 8 |
| France
|
4 | 5 |
| Japan
|
4 | 4 |
 United States
|
2 | 2 |
 Australia
|
2 | 2 |
 Rhodesia
|
1 | 2 |
 South Africa
|
1 | 2 |
| Venezuela
|
1 | 2 |
 Finland
|
1 | 1 |
 San Marino
|
1 | 1 |
References
editBibliography
- Marshall, Anne (1997). Guinness Book of Knowledge. Guinness Publishing. ISBN 0-85112-046-6.
Specific
- ^ Marshall 1997, p. 289
- ^ a b "Basics". MotoGP. Archived from the original on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ^ "2010 Moto2 class to be powered by Honda". MotoGP. 2 May 2009. Archived from the original on 6 January 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2009.
- ^ "FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix Regulations 2009" (PDF). Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme. 31 January 2009. p. 44. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2009.
- ^ "Key Rules". MotoGP. Archived from the original on 9 March 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ^ "Dani Pedrosa". Laureus. Archived from the original on 22 June 2022. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
- ^ "Elías makes history as first Moto2 World Champion". Dorna Sports. 10 October 2010. Archived from the original on 24 December 2013. Retrieved 9 November 2010.