United States motorcycle Grand Prix

The United States motorcycle Grand Prix was a round of the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Championship.

United States Grand Prix
Grand Prix motorcycle racing
VenueMazda Raceway Laguna Seca (1988–1991, 1993–1994, 2005–2013)
Daytona International Speedway (1964–1965)
First race1964
Last race2013
Most wins (rider)Hugh Anderson, John Kocinski, Wayne Rainey, Casey Stoner, (3)
Most wins (manufacturer)Honda (12)

History

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The first United States Grand Prix was held in 1961 as a non-championship race at the Daytona International Speedway on the 2-mile or 3.2 kilometre long motorcycle course.[1] In 1964, the FIM upgraded the Daytona race to world championship status by making it the opening round of the 1964 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. A feud between the FIM and the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) meant that AMA competitors such as Gary Nixon, Dick Mann and Roger Reiman were prevented from entering the FIM sanctioned event.[2] This marked the first time that Grand Prix motorcycle racing raced on the North American continent.[3][1][4] Spectator attendance for this race was low as there was little interest from the American public, who preferred the championship organized by the AMA and as a result was not interested in the "European" style of racing.[1] In 1965 the U.S. Grand Prix returned for the second time at Daytona, but privateers were unable to pay for the trip to the United States and few Americans went to see the race due to the lack of interest in the majority European-styled championship.[1][4] As a result of the lack of interest from the American public, top teams and riders, the United States Grand Prix was removed from the 1966 season.

After a 23-year absence, the U.S. Grand Prix returned for the 1988 on the Laguna Seca Raceway.[4] That year's event was marred with problems as many especially European riders complained about the bumpyness of an old part of the track and the dangerously close barriers and concrete blocs that surrounded the circuit. Some European riders even considered to not participate in the race on Sunday while the American riders had no problems with the circuit as they had more experience. The 1989 didn't fare much better as the organization was once again poor - there were problems with the prize- and start money, tickets and timekeeping. Against the rules some sold tickets in front of the riders' quarter's, the prize money was unusual, the supply roads were insufficient and kept getting altered and the timekeeping produced useful times only after 18 hours.[5] On top of that, the American organizers wanted to include a sidecar race in their program but refused to pay the extra travel expenses. While last year's bumpy section had been reprofiled for 1989, riders still complained it was dangerous - especially Turns 11, 1 and 2.[6] During the race, an ambulance drove on the track in dangerous manner to assist the crashed out Wayne Gardner who had broken his leg after a heavy shunt exiting Turn 5, with no yellow flags being shown to the riders.

A bizarre incident occurred on the cooldown lap of the 1989 Grand Prix, when Bubba Shobert hit the back of Kevin Magee's motorcycle at high speed after he failed to see the Australian.[5] Magee had stopped in the middle of the track behind a blind hill after he ran out of fuel to do a rear-wheel burnout, but Shobert was not looking forward as he was congratulating Eddie Lawson, who himself narrowly missed Magee. As Shobert lay motionless in the sand, a visibly distraught Lawson tried to help him. Shobert was brought to the hospital with severe head injuries and Magee was also recovered with a broken ankle and lower leg. Shobert would never race again after this incident while Magee was forced to miss both the Spanish and Italian rounds that year.[5][6]

In 1990 the track of the U.S. Grand Prix had undergone various upgrades but riders still complained some points were dangerous.[7] On lap two, Magee suffered a heavy accident whilst being in the top positions, his second in two years at this circuit. The race had to be red flagged to allow an ambulance to enter the circuit, where the Australian was taken to the hospital with severe head trauma. There he was operated and a blood clot in his brain was surgically removed, after which he was kept in an artificial coma for some time.[8][9] The accident meant he was out of the 1990 season. In 1992 the United States Grand Prix was taken off the calendar in favour of other venues preferred by Bernie Ecclestone, who was increasingly involved in Grand Prix motorcycle racing at the time.[10] For the 1993 however the event returned for two more years as Ecclestone focused more on Formula 1 again.[4] In 1995 the race was scheduled to be held on August 6, but was eventually scrapped due to financial problems and complaints from riders about the dangerous circuit.[11][12]

After a ten year hiatus, the event was brought back for the third time in 2005 on the same circuit as before - Laguna Seca. The track had undergone the needed updates and safety requirements and was now considered to be safe enough to host a U.S. Grand Prix again.[12] Due to a California law on air pollution, only the four-stroke MotoGP motorcycles were allowed to participate.[citation needed] The race was won by home hero Nicky Hayden.[13][4] In 2006 Hayden once again won his home race.[14][4] The 2008 United States Grand Prix saw a thrilling battle between Valentino Rossi and Casey Stoner, the race being won by the Italian in the end.[15][16][4] In 2014, the United States could only support two events (the Indianapolis Grand Prix and Motorcycle Grand Prix of the Americas were also scheduled at this time) and the organizers, as a not-for-profit, could no longer compete with either circuits. As a result, they couldn't keep up with Dorna's ever increasing financial demands and Laguna Seca was taken off the calendar despite having a contract for that year.[17][18]

During the last existence of the U.S. Grand Prix, two other races co-existed with each other for one season in 2013 - the Indianapolis Grand Prix and the Grand Prix of the Americas. The first Grand Prix existed from 2008 until 2015 and the second one still is held today, only being cancelled in 2020 after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Official names and sponsors

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  • 1965: Grand Prix of United States (no official sponsor)[19]
  • 1988: The United States International Grand Prix (no official sponsor)[20]
  • 1989: The Dunlop USGP[21]
  • 1990: The U.S. Budweiser International Grand Prix[22]
  • 1991: The Honda And Yamaha Motorcycles United States International Grand Prix[23]
  • 1993: USGP (no official sponsor)[24]
  • 1994: United States Motorcycle Grand Prix (no official sponsor)[25]
  • 2005–2013: Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix[26]

Spectator attendance

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2005: 57,932[27]

Formerly used circuits

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Past winners

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A pink background indicates an event that was not part of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing championship.

Multiple winners (riders)

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# Wins Rider Wins
Category Years won
3   Hugh Anderson 125cc 1964, 1965
50cc 1964
  Wayne Rainey 500cc 1989, 1990, 1991
  John Kocinski 500cc 1993
250cc 1989, 1990
  Casey Stoner MotoGP 2007, 2011, 2012
2   Mike Hailwood 500cc 1964, 1965
  Luca Cadalora 500cc 1994
250cc 1991
  Nicky Hayden MotoGP 2005, 2006

Multiple winners (manufacturers)

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# Wins Manufacturer Wins
Category Years won
12   Honda MotoGP 2005, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013
250cc 1988, 1991, 1993, 1994
125cc 1993, 1994
10   Yamaha MotoGP 2008, 2010
500cc 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1994
250cc 1965, 1989, 1990
4   Suzuki 125cc 1964, 1965
50cc 1964, 1965
2   MV Agusta 500cc 1964, 1965

By year

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Year Track Moto3 Moto2 MotoGP Report
Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer
2013 Laguna Seca   Marc Márquez Honda Report
2012   Casey Stoner Honda Report
Year Track 125cc Moto2 MotoGP Report
Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer
2011 Laguna Seca   Casey Stoner Honda Report
2010   Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha Report
Year Track 125cc 250cc MotoGP Report
Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer
2009 Laguna Seca   Dani Pedrosa Honda Report
2008   Valentino Rossi Yamaha Report
2007   Casey Stoner Ducati Report
2006   Nicky Hayden Honda Report
2005   Nicky Hayden Honda Report
Year Track 125cc 250cc 500cc Report
Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer
1994 Laguna Seca   Takeshi Tsujimura Honda   Doriano Romboni Honda   Luca Cadalora Yamaha Report
1993   Dirk Raudies Honda   Loris Capirossi Honda   John Kocinski Cagiva Report
1991   Luca Cadalora Honda   Wayne Rainey Yamaha Report
1990   John Kocinski Yamaha   Wayne Rainey Yamaha Report
Year Track 80cc 125cc 250cc 500cc Report
Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer
1989 Laguna Seca   John Kocinski Yamaha   Wayne Rainey Yamaha Report
1988   Jim Filice Honda   Eddie Lawson Yamaha Report
Year Track 50cc 125cc 250cc 350cc 500cc Report
Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer
1965 Daytona   Ernst Degner Suzuki   Hugh Anderson Suzuki   Phil Read Yamaha   Mike Hailwood MV Agusta Report
1964   Hugh Anderson Suzuki   Hugh Anderson Suzuki   Alan Shepherd MZ   Mike Hailwood MV Agusta Report
1963[28]   Mitsuo Itoh Suzuki   Ernst Degner Suzuki   Fumio Ito Yamaha   Don Vesco Yamaha Report
1962[29]   Kunimitsu Takahashi Honda   Kunimitsu Takahashi Honda   Jess Thomas Motobi   Kunimitsu Takahashi Honda Report
Year Track 125cc 250cc 350cc 500cc Report
Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer Rider Manufacturer
1961[29] Daytona   Moto Kitano Honda   Tony Godfrey Matchless Report

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Falcioni, Massimo (April 18, 2019). "Motomondiale, quando nei primi GP USA 1964 e 1965 a Daytona gli italiani erano… due". Motoblog.
  2. ^ Scalzo, Joe (April 1, 1965). "Racing Review". Cycle World. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  3. ^ "MotoGP History". Devitt Insurance. February 2, 2017. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Sports, Dorna. "The GP history of Laguna Seca | MotoGP™". www.motogp.com.
  5. ^ a b c "Watch: A shocking moment in 500cc MotoGP history". www.motorsport.com.
  6. ^ a b "Grand Prix uitslagen en bijzonderheden 1989". Jumping Jack (in Dutch). Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
  7. ^ "Grand Prix uitslagen en bijzonderheden 1990". Jumping Jack (in Dutch). Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
  8. ^ "Motorcyclist Magee Critical After Crash". Los Angeles Times. April 10, 1990.
  9. ^ "Kevin Magee". November 5, 2010.
  10. ^ "Grand Prix uitslagen en bijzonderheden 1992". Jumping Jack (in Dutch). Archived from the original on March 15, 2014. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
  11. ^ "Grand Prix uitslagen en bijzonderheden 1995". Jumping Jack (in Dutch). Archived from the original on April 13, 2013. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
  12. ^ a b "Grand Prix uitslagen en bijzonderheden 2005". Jumping Jack (in Dutch). July 25, 2015. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
  13. ^ "Laguna Seca 2005: The day Nicky Hayden was "unbeatable"". us.motorsport.com.
  14. ^ "Hayden claims US GP repeat, Rossi disaster". Crash. July 23, 2006.
  15. ^ "Rossi vs Stoner - the aftermath". Crash. July 21, 2008.
  16. ^ "Rossi: Furious battle against Stoner crucial for 2008 Laguna Seca win". Crash. April 11, 2020.
  17. ^ "Laguna Seca dropped from 2014 MotoGP calendar". Crash. October 1, 2013.
  18. ^ "MotoGP: Goodbye, Laguna Seca". Cycle World.
  19. ^ "1965 500cc Class (FIM Grand Prix World Championship) Programmes". The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project.
  20. ^ "1988 500cc Class (FIM Grand Prix World Championship) Programmes". The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project.
  21. ^ "1989 500cc Class (FIM Grand Prix World Championship) Programmes". The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project.
  22. ^ "1990 500cc Class (FIM Grand Prix World Championship) Programmes". The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project.
  23. ^ "1991 500cc Class (FIM Grand Prix World Championship) Programmes". The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project.
  24. ^ "1993 500cc Class (FIM Grand Prix World Championship) Programmes". The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project.
  25. ^ "1994 500cc Class (FIM Grand Prix World Championship) Programmes". The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project.
  26. ^ "2005 MotoGP Class (FIM Grand Prix World Championship) Programmes". The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project.
  27. ^ "MotoGP Classics - Laguna Seca 05'". YouTube. March 28, 2013. Archived from the original on March 30, 2013. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
  28. ^ "Yamaha 1963, CYCLE USA". ClassicYams.com. Archived from the original on July 9, 2009. Retrieved September 5, 2011.
  29. ^ a b "L'Histoire du Grand Prix des Etats-Unis et du Grand Prix d'Indianapolis" [History of the United States Grand Prix and the Indianapolis Grand Prix]. Racing Memory (in French). Archived from the original on April 7, 2012. Retrieved November 1, 2011.