This is the amazing story of how Yamaha claimed World Championship glory for four years in a row, with action-packed archive race footage, behind-the-scenes access and contributions from the racing stars delivering the story behind the headline-grabbing triumphs.
Enjoy dramatic race action from legendary circuits like Assen, Le Mans, Silverstone, Spa and more as the greats of motorcycle racing, including Kenny Roberts, Barry Sheene, Giacomo Agostini, Johnny Cecetto and Randy Mamola, do elbow-to-elbow battle for World Championship honours.
The first of these unique films follows the fortunes of American Steve Baker in his first season of World Championship racing. With exceptional footage from 500cc and 750cc races of 1977, plus interviews with Baker and other stars of the season, we discover how the ‘rookie’ claimed a World Championship at his first attempt, and was only beaten to the 500cc crown by the mercurial Sheene.
In the next three films we relive one of the most amazing eras of motorcycle Grand Prix racing, the reign of ‘King’ Kenny. Roberts burst onto the 500cc GP scene in 1978 and proved unstoppable, taking the title not only in his first season, but in 1979 and 1980 as well. He made it look easy, but as these extraordinary films remind us, the American superstar had to battle with the very best all the way to secure his hard-earned World Championship victories.
The down-to-the-wire title chases of 1978 and 1980 are exceptional edge-of-the-seat viewing, and the 1979 British Grand Prix is rightly regarded as one of the greatest motorcycle showdowns ever – the incredible footage on this DVD shows exactly why. We are also treated to rare on-board footage with Roberts, contributions from experts like Kel Carruthers and the story of Christian Sarron’s assault on the 750cc title in 1979.
Yamaha – World Champions 1977-1980 is more than a simple racing review; unparalleled access to the riders and team members ensures you discover the stories behind the headlines, and how history was made.
"This superb compilation of four classic films begins with Steve Baker's successful assault on the 750cc Championship in 1977 and includes the 500cc action where Barry Sheen took his second title. Then follows a string of three successive 500cc crowns for 'King' Kenny Roberts and his US Yamaha team with Australian Kel Carruthers in charge. As well as the racing action, there is some of the first on-bike footage, plus interviews with riders and team members. Christian Sarron's efforts in the 1979 750cc Championship are also extensively coverered. A real classic from one of the most exciting eras in GP history" Old Bike Magazine Australia
"In the late 1970s, Yamaha rose to dominance in the ultra-competitive world of motorcycle Grand Prix racing, helped in no small part by the arrival of Kenny Roberts. For four years, the Japanese giants grabbed the headlines with stunning success. And now you could relive those golden moments. Four action-packed archive race films including behind-the-scenes access and contributions from the racing stars are on show" The Horncastle News