Jarno Saarinen at 1971 Nations motorcycle Grand Prix

The 1971 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 23rd F.I.M.

Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the highest class of motorcycle road racing events held on road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held since the start ...

season. The season consisted of twelve Grand Prix races in six classes: 500cc, 350cc, 250cc, 125cc, 50cc and Sidecars 500cc. It began on 9 May, with

Austrian Grand Prix The Austrian Grand Prix () is a Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile sanctioned motor racing event that was held in , –, and –. It returned to the Formula One calendar in , where it has remained since then. It was first held at ...

and ended with

Spanish Grand Prix The Spanish Grand Prix (, ) is a Formula One motor racing event currently held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The race is one of the oldest in the world still contested, celebrating its centenary in 2013. The race had modest beginnings ...

on 26 September.

Season summary

Giacomo Agostini Giacomo Agostini (; born 16 June 1942) is an Italian former professional motorcycle road racer and racing team manager. He competed in the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing world championships from 1963 to 1977, most prominently as a member of ...

would claim his tenth world championship in 1971, passing

Carlo Ubbiali Carlo Ubbiali (22 September 19292 June 2020) was an Italian professional motorcycle road racer. He competed in the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing world championships from to , most prominently as a member of the MV Agusta factory racing team. ...

and

Mike Hailwood Stanley Michael Bailey Hailwood (2 April 1940 – 23 March 1981) was a British racing driver and motorcycle road racer, who competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing from to , and Formula One between and . Nicknamed "the Bike", Hailwood was ...

as the all time championship leader.

Angel Nieto An angel is a Spirit (supernatural entity), spiritual (without a physical body), heaven, heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with Bird wing, bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the Transce ...

challenged for the 50cc and 125cc titles. A crash in the final 50cc race handed the title to Dutchman Jan de Vries but, Nieto was able to claim the 125 crown over a young

Barry Sheene Barry Steven Frank Sheene (11 September 1950 – 10 March 2003) was a British professional motorcycle racer and television sports presenter. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing between and , most prominently as a member of the Su ...

Phil Read Phillip William Read, (1 January 1939 – 6 October 2022) was an English professional motorcycle racer. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing from 1961 to 1976. Read is notable for being the first competitor to win world championship ...

captured the 250 championship on a private Yamaha-powered Eric Cheney-designed chassis, after falling out with the Yamaha factory. Agostini won the 350 title for the fourth year in a row but a newcomer served notice when young Finn,

Jarno Saarinen Jarno Karl Keimo Saarinen (11 December 1945 – 20 May 1973) was a Finnish professional Motorcycle racer. He competed in the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing world championships from 1968 to 1971 as Yamaha privateer, before receiving the Yamaha ...

, won his first Grand Prix at the Czechoslovak round then won again in Italy. Agostini had things his way in the 500cc class, winning the first eight rounds of the eleven race series against minimal factory-sponsored opposition. For the second consecutive year a New Zealand rider finished second in the premier class –

Ginger Molloy Ginger Molloy (born 25 December 1937) is a former New Zealand Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He competed from 1965 to 1970 in the Grand Prix world championship. Growing up in Huntly, Molloy played rugby league for Huntly United alongside ...

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...

and Keith Turner in 1971.

Jack Findlay Cyril John Findlay (5 February 1935 – 19 May 2007) was an Australian professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He is noted for having one of the longest racing careers in Grand Prix history spanning 20 years, as well as one of five ri ...

's victory at the 1971

Ulster Grand Prix The Ulster Grand Prix is a defunct motorcycle racing, motorcycle road racing, road race which took place on the Dundrod Circuit made up entirely of closed-off public roads near Belfast, Northern Ireland. Due to the races having the fastest aver ...

not only marked the first victory for a Suzuki motorcycle in the premier 500cc class, but also the first-ever 500cc class victory for a motorcycle powered by a

two stroke A two-stroke (or two-stroke cycle) engine is a type of internal combustion engine that completes a power cycle with two strokes of the piston, one up and one down, in one revolution of the crankshaft in contrast to a four-stroke engine which re ...

engine.Jack Findlay obituary - The Telegraph
/ref> Kawasaki won their first 500cc class victory at the season ending

Jarama Jarama () is a river in central Spain. It flows north to south and passes east of Madrid where the El Atazar Dam is built on a tributary, the Lozoya River. It flows into the river Tagus in Aranjuez. The Manzanares is a tributary of the Jaram ...

when

Dave Simmonds Dave Simmonds (25 October 1939 – 23 October 1972) was a British professional Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He competed in the Grand Prix world championships from 1963 to 1972. Simmonds is notable for winning the 1969 125 cc FIM road ra ...

won the race after Agostini sat out the event after already winning the championship. The inaugural Austrian Grand Prix was held at the new high-speed

Salzburgring The Salzburgring is a motorsport race track located in Plainfeld, east of Salzburg. Key facts Track Length Bends 15 Straights ...

1971 Grand Prix season calendar

Scoring system

Points were awarded to the top ten finishers in each race. Only the best of six races were counted on 50cc, 125cc, 350cc and 500cc championships, best of seven in 250cc, while in the Sidecars, the best of five races were counted.

500cc final standings

1971 350 cc Roadracing World Championship final standings

1971 250 cc Roadracing World Championship final standings

1971 125 cc Roadracing World Championship final standings

1971 50 cc Roadracing World Championship final standings

References

* Büla, Maurice & Schertenleib, Jean-Claude (2001). ''Continental Circus 1949–2000''. Chronosports S.A. * {{DEFAULTSORT:1971 Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing Season Grand Prix motorcycle racing seasons Grand Prix motorcycle racing season