1976 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season explained

The 1976 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 28th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.

Season summary

1976 marked the beginning of the era of Suzuki domination with the Japanese firm taking 11 of the first 12 places in the premier class. Angel Nieto would take his fifth world title in the 50cc division, this time aboard a Bultaco. In the 125cc class, it was more of the same with Morbidelli taking another crown with Pier Paolo Bianchi claiming the championship. Walter Villa would claim double world championships in the 250cc and 350cc classes for Harley-Davidson fighting off a strong challenge from defending champion, Johnny Cecotto in the larger class.

Barry Sheene came to the fore with a dominating championship season in the 500cc division, finishing ahead of his Suzuki teammate Teuvo Länsivuori. Newcomer Marco Lucchinelli impressed as well on a Suzuki but injuries curtailed his performance. Pat Hennen became the first American rider to win a 500cc Grand Prix, when he triumphed at the Finnish Grand Prix.

1976 marked the end of an era as it would be the last time the Isle of Man TT would appear on the Grand Prix calendar. Once the most prestigious race of the year, the event had been increasingly boycotted by the top riders. The TT finally succumbed to pressure for increased safety in racing events. The season also marked the end of another era with 15 time world champion Giacomo Agostini winning his last Grand Prix at the season-ending round at the Nürburgring. As Agostini had chosen the MV Agusta for this challenging track, this win was also the last for a 500cc four-stroke engine.

1976 Grand Prix season calendar

Round	Date	Race	Location	50cc winner	125cc winner	250cc winner	350cc winner	500cc winner	Report
1	April 25	French Grand Prix	Le Mans Bugatti	Herbert Rittberger		Walter Villa	Walter Villa	Barry Sheene	Report
2	May 2	Austrian Grand Prix	Salzburgring		Pier Paolo Bianchi		Johnny Cecotto	Barry Sheene	Report
3	May 16	Nations Grand Prix	Mugello	Angel Nieto	Pier Paolo Bianchi	Walter Villa	Johnny Cecotto	Barry Sheene	Report
4	May 23	Yugoslavian Grand Prix	Opatija	Ulrich Graf	Pier Paolo Bianchi	Dieter Braun	Olivier Chevallier		Report
5	June 12	Isle of Man TT	Snaefell Mountain			Tom Herron	Chas Mortimer	Tom Herron	Report
6	June 26	Dutch TT	Assen	Angel Nieto	Pier Paolo Bianchi	Walter Villa	Giacomo Agostini	Barry Sheene	Report
7	July 4	Belgian Grand Prix	Spa-Francorchamps	Herbert Rittberger	Angel Nieto	Walter Villa		John Williams	Report
8	July 25	Swedish Grand Prix	Anderstorp	Angel Nieto	Pier Paolo Bianchi	Takazumi Katayama		Barry Sheene	Report
9	August 1	Finnish Grand Prix	Imatra	Julien van Zeebroeck	Pier Paolo Bianchi	Walter Villa	Walter Villa	Pat Hennen	Report
10	August 22	Czechoslovakian Grand Prix	Brno			Walter Villa	Walter Villa	John Newbold	Report
11	August 29	German Grand Prix	Nürburgring Nordschleife	Angel Nieto	Anton Mang	Walter Villa	Walter Villa	Giacomo Agostini	Report
12	September 19	Spanish Grand Prix	Montjuich	Angel Nieto	Pier Paolo Bianchi	Franco Bonera	Kork Ballington		Report

Participants

500cc participants

Team Constructor Motorcycle No. Rider Rounds Team Agostini-Marlboro MV Agusta/Suzuki ???/??? 1 Giacomo Agostini 1–3, 5–6, 8–10 Team Life International Suzuki Suzuki RG 500 2 9 Phil Read 1–3 Life Racing Team 4 2 3 Teuvo Länsivuori 1–3, 6–9* Danfay Yamaha ??? 4 Billie Guthrie 4 Texaco Heron Team Suzuki Suzuki ??? 5 2 30 John Williams 1–2, 4–6 Suzuki RG 500 7 Barry Sheene 1–3, 5–7 8 3 6 7 John Newbold 6–10 ??? 14 Tom Herron 2, 4 Hermetite Various 6 8 3 Alex George 2, 5 Meuaui Racing Team Suzuki 10 6 5 Jack Findlay 2–8 Team Sarome Yamaha/Suzuki ???/??? 11 8 10 Chas Mortimer 1, 4, 6–7, 9–10 Yamaha ??? 41 17 Takazumi Katayama 4, 6, 8 ??? 12 8 9 11 Karl Auer 1–2, 7–9 Boeri Dainese Racing Team Suzuki 13 14 30 10 12 Dieter Braun 1–3, 6, 8 Esso Yamaha 19 18 25 29 Olivier Chevallier 9 Ecurie Elf Suzuki 21 20 Michel Rougerie 1–2, 6 ??? Yamaha 22 13 16 Bernard Fau 5 Castrol/Jim Findlay Yamaha TZ??? 23 15 19 21 Tom Herron 6–7 Beale ??? 23 Roger Nichols 4 ??? Suzuki 24 52 21 48 Christian Estrosi 8 Yamaha 25 Ian Richards 4 26 41 31 24 Børge Nielsen 3 Suzuki 27 33 28 43 12 Marcel Ankoné 3, 6, 10 Gallina Corse Suzuki RG 500 28 40 26 31 Virginio Ferrari 3, 10 33 40 34 32 30 17 Marco Lucchinelli 1–2, 7–10 ??? 34 Roberto Gallina ??? Riemersma Suzuki RG 500 34 31 48 Wil Hartog 2, 5, 7 Padgett Yamaha ??? 38 26 Jon Ekerold 4 Frankonia Suzuki Suzuki 40 38 18 43 51 22 23 71 Philippe Coulon 3, 7–9 ??? 41 39 19 44 63 Helmut Kassner 5–6 Swaep Motor-Racing Yamaha 43 33 24 20 Víctor Palomo 1–2, 7 Laponder Yamaha/Suzuki ???/??? 51 43 32 27 39 14 29 Boet van Dulmen 8–10 Colemans Suzuki ??? 54 45 25 40 28 22 66 Pat Hennen 1–3, 5–10 56 47 32 35 42 25 Stuart Avant 1–3, 7 Team Venemotos Yamaha Yamaha YZR500 (OW29) 55 3 21 16 Johnny Cecotto 1–3 ??? ??? 57 28 44 27 Max Wiener 9 Source: ^[1]

Key Regular Rider Wildcard Rider Replacement Rider

Notes

• * Länsivuori was disqualified for the second round of the season, the Austrian GP, for not stopping his engine during a refuelling stop.

Final standings

500cc standings

Place	Rider	Number	Country	Machine	Points	Wins
1	Barry Sheene	7	United Kingdom	Suzuki	72	5
2	Teuvo Lansivuori	4	Finland	Suzuki	48	0
3	Pat Hennen	40	United States	Suzuki	46	1
4	Marco Lucchinelli		Italy	Suzuki	40	0
5	John Newbold	8	United Kingdom	Suzuki	31	1
6	Philippe Coulon		Switzerland	Suzuki	28	0
7	Giacomo Agostini	1	Italy	Suzuki / MV Agusta	26	1
8	Jack Findlay	10	Australia	Suzuki	25	0
9	John Williams	5	United Kingdom	Suzuki	24	1
10	Phil Read	2	United Kingdom	Suzuki	22	0
11	Marcel Ankone				21
12	Stuart Avant				20
13	Tom Herron				17	1
14	Chas Mortimer				16
15	Michel Rougerie				16
16	Karl Auer				16
17	Dieter Braun				15
18	Víctor Palomo				13
19	Ian Richards				12
20	Johnny Cecotto	3			12
21	Wil Hartog				10
22	Virginio Ferrari				10
23	Billie Guthrie				10
24	Alex George				10
25	Boet Van Dulmen				9
26	Takazumi Katayama				8
27	Max Wiener				6
28	Roger Nichols				6
29	Olivier Chevallier				5
30	Jon Ekerold				5
31	Bernard Fau				4
32	Bernd Tungethal				4
33	Alan North				4
34	Gordon Pantall				3
35	Christian Estrosi				3
36	Rob Bron				3
37	Christian Bourgeois				3
38	Helmut Kassner				3
39	Pekka Nurmi				2
40	John Weeden				2
41	Dave Potter				1
42	G.Schwemmer				1
43	W.A. Smith				1
44	Edmar Ferreira				1
45	Borge W.Nielsen				1

350cc standings

Place	Rider	Number	Country	Machine	Points	Wins
1	Walter Villa	42	Italy	Aermacchi Harley-Davidson	76	4
2	Johnny Cecotto	1	Venezuela	Yamaha	65	2
3	Chas Mortimer	6	United Kingdom	Yamaha	54	1
4	Tom Herron	9	United Kingdom	Yamaha	47	0
5	John Dodds	56	Australia	Yamaha	34	0
6	Víctor Palomo		Spain	Yamaha	29	0
7	Takazumi Katayama		Japan	Yamaha	28	0
8	Bruno Kneubühler		Switzerland	Yamaha	28	0
9	Olivier Chevallier		France	Yamaha	27	1
10	Franco Uncini		Italy	Yamaha	27	0
11	Dieter Braun				23
12	Kork Ballington				20
13	Pentti Korhonen				19
14	Patrick Pons				18
15	Gianfranco Bonera				15
16	Giacomo Agostini				15
17	Tony Rutter				12
18	Billie Guthrie				10
19	Gerard Choukroun				10
20	Alan North				10
21	Jean-François Baldé				10
22	Martin Sharpe				8
23	Leif Gustafsson				8
24	Boet Van Dulmen				6
25	John Weeden				5
26	Patrick Fernandez				5
27	Paolo Tordi				5
28	Derek Chatterton				5
29	Jon Ekerold				4
30	Neil Tuxworth				4
31	Philip Bouzanne				3
32	Karl Auer				3
33	Jack Findlay				3
34	Kjell Solberg				3
35	Bo Granath				2
36	Rudolf Kunz				2
37	Claudio Loigo				1
38	S.McClements				1

250cc standings

Place	Rider	Number	Country	Machine	Points	Wins
1	Walter Villa	1	Italy	Aermacchi Harley-Davidson	90	7
2	Takazumi Katayama		Japan	Yamaha	73	1
3	Franco Bonera		Italy	Aermacchi Harley-Davidson	61	1
4	Tom Herron		United Kingdom	Yamaha	47	1
5	Pentti Korhonen		Finland	Yamaha	47	0
6	Dieter Braun		West Germany	Yamaha	42	1
7	Chas Mortimer	6	United Kingdom	Yamaha	31	0
8	Bruno Kneubühler	9	Switzerland	Yamaha	29	0
9	Olivier Chevallier		France	Yamaha	25	0
10	Víctor Palomo		Spain	Yamaha	25	0
11	John Dodds				24
12	Patrick Fernandez				21
13	Kork Ballington				15
14	Paolo Pileri				12
15	Jon Ekerold				10
16	Alan North				10
17	Tony Rutter				8
18	Jean-François Baldé				8
19	Eddie Roberts				6
20	Gerard Choukroun				6
21	Franco Uncini				6
22	Patrick Pons				6
23	Philip Bouzanne				6
24	Pekka Nurmi				5
25	Alex George				5
26	Boet van Dulmen				4
27	John Weeden				4
28	Ian Richards				3
29	Leif Gustafsson				3
30	Dennis Casement				2
31	Jean Claude Hogrel				2
32	Tapio Virtanen				2
33	János Drapál				2
32	Harald Bartol				1
33	Eero Hyvärinen				1
34	Niel Tuxworth				1

125cc standings

Place	Rider	Number	Country	Machine	Points	Wins
1	Pier Paolo Bianchi	2	Italy	Morbidelli	90	7
2	Ángel Nieto		Spain	Bultaco	67	1
3	Paolo Pileri	1	Italy	Morbidelli	64	0
4	Henk van Kessel	7	Netherlands	Condor	46	0
5	Anton Mang		West Germany	Morbidelli	32	1
6	Jean-Louis Guignabodet	2	France	Morbidelli	27	0
7	Eugenio Lazzarini	5	Italy	Morbidelli	26	0
8	Gert Bender		West Germany	Bender	25	0
9	Stefan Dörflinger		Switzerland	Morbidelli	23	0
10	Julien van Zeebroeck		Belgium	Morbidelli	18	0
11	Xaver Tschannen				14
12	Walter Koschine				12
13	Cees van Dongen				11
14	Otello Buscherini				10
15	Leif Gustafsson				10
16	Harald Bartol				9
17	Hans Müller				9
18	Horst Seel				8
19	Enrico Cereda				7
20	Pierluigi Conforti				7
21	Lennart Lundgren				6
22	Per Edward Carlsson				6
23	Johann Zemsauer				5
24	Matti Kinnunen				5
25	Rolf Blatter				4
26	Luigi Richetti				4
27	Hans Hummel				4
28	Peter Frohnmeyer				3
29	Ermanno Giuliano				2
30	Auno Hakala				2
31	Hans Hallberg				1
32	Lennart Lindell				1
33	Heinz Schmid				1
34	P.Cecchini				1

50cc standings

Place	Rider	Number	Country	Machine	Points	Wins
1	Ángel Nieto	1	Spain	Bultaco	85	5
2	Herbert Rittberger	5	West Germany	Kreidler	76	2
3	Ulrich Graf		Switzerland	Kreidler	69	1
4	Eugenio Lazzarini	2	Italy	Morbidelli	53	0
5	Rudolf Kunz	4	West Germany	Kreidler	34	0
6	Julien van Zeebroeck	9	Belgium	Kreidler	26	1
7	Stefan Dörflinger	6	Switzerland	Kreidler	25	0
8	Rolf Blatter		Switzerland	Kreidler	25	0
9	Hans Hummel	9	Austria	Kreidler	20	0
10	Pierre Audry		France	ABF	15	0
11	Aldo Pero				13
12	Theo Timmer				12
13	Engelbert Kip				12
14	Gerrit Strikker				9
15	Cees van Dongen				9
16	Benjamin Laurent				8
17	Günter Schirnhofer				7
18	Theo Van Geffen				6
19	Ricardo Tormo				5
20	Robert Laver				5
21	Claudio Lusuardi				4
22	Yves Le Tourmelin				4
23	E.Mischiatti				4
24	B.Stopp				4
25	Wolfgang Müller				3
26	Ramon Gali				3
27	Ermanno Giuliano				1

See also

• 1976 Formula 750 season

References

• Büla, Maurice & Schertenleib, Jean-Claude (2001). Continental Circus 1949-2000. Chronosports S.A.
• Web site: The Official MotoGP website . 2010-07-06.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Motorcycle Racing Online - 500cc Grand Prix entry lists for 1976 to 1978 . f1network.net . 2006-10-13 .