Product details
Introduction
Description
From the Isle of Man to Phillip Island, from 1949 until 2001, the 500cc champions were the kings of motorcycle racing – until new rules consigned the 500 class to history. This book celebrates those five decades through the lavishly illustrated life stories of the twenty-two World Champions from the first former bomber pilot Les Graham to the last, clowning genius Valentino Rossi.
Famous names like Geoff Duke, Mike Hailwood, Giacomo Agostini, Barry Sheene and Kenny Roberts Senior are remembered, but so are the lesser-known heroes who rode the storm to brief glory. Appendices detail the top three riders, year-on-year, and the champion motorcycles.
A GP journalist since 1984, Michael Scott – author of over 15 books including biographies of Barry Sheene and Wayne Rainey – he is editor of the prestige annual Motocourse. He has met all the surviving World Champions, and followed the careers of many of them in detail.
This book, packed with first-hand anecdotes and illustrated with more than 200 often rare, historic photographs, tell the champions’ inspiring stories.
Hardback Book. 160 pages.
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