| Giacomo Agostini | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Agostini in 2022 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Italian | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1942-06-16)16 June 1942 (age 83) Brescia,Kingdom of Italy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| British Formula One Championship career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Active years | 1979–1980 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Entries | 23 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Championships | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Podiums | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career points | 41 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pole positions | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fastest laps | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Giacomo Agostini (Italian pronunciation:[ˈdʒaːkomoaɡoˈstiːni]; born 16 June 1942) is anItalian former professional motorcycleroad racer and racing team manager. He competed in theFIMGrand Prix motorcycle racing world championships from 1963 to 1977, most prominently as a member of theMV Agusta factory racing team.[1] He amassed 122 Grand Prix wins and 15World Championship titles.[2] Of these, 68 wins and 8 titles came in the 500 cc class, the rest in the 350 cc class.[2] For these achievements obtained over the course of a career spanning 17 years, theAMA described him as "...perhaps the greatest Grand Prix rider of all time".[1] In 2000, Agostini was inducted into theMotoGP Hall of Fame as a MotoGP Legend,[3] while in 2010, he was named anFIM Legend for his motorcycling achievements.[4]
Agostini was born inBrescia,Lombardy. His family was fromLovere, where his father was employed in the local town council. The oldest of four brothers, Agostini initially had to steal away to compete, first in hill climb events and then inroad racing, as his father did not approve of his son's motorcycle racing career and did everything he could to persuade him not to race.[1]
Eventually, his father came to terms with his racing and Agostini won the 1963 Italian 175cc championship aboard aMorini. He got his break when Morini factory riderTarquinio Provini left the team to ride forBenelli. Count Alfonso Morini hired the young Agostini to ride for him.[1] In1964, Agostini would win the Italian 350cc title and proved his ability by finishing fourth in the Italian Grand Prix atMonza.[5]
These results caught the eye ofCount Domenico Agusta, who signed Agostini to ride for hisMV Agusta squad asMike Hailwood's teammate.[1] Agostini then fought a season-long battle withHonda'sJim Redman for the1965 350cc world championship. He seemed to have the title won when he led the final round inJapan atSuzuka when his bike failed him, handing the title to Redman.[5]
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At the end of the 1965 season, Hailwood left to join Honda as he had tired of working for the difficult Count Agusta. With Agostini now the top MV Agusta rider, he responded by winning the 500cc title seven years in succession for the Italian factory.[1][2] He would also win the 350cc title seven times in succession and won 10Isle of Man TTs. Agostini and Hailwood engaged in a fierce competition for the1967 500cc World Championship including a famous duel at the1967 Isle of Man TT race.[5] The championship wasn't decided until the final race of the year in Canada. Hailwood won there to tie Agostini on points. Each rider had five wins so it came down to second places — Agostini taking the title with three seconds to Hailwood's two.[5] Honda withdrew from motorcycle racing after the 1967 season while Hailwood pursued a new career path in Formula One racing.
From 1968 to 1970, Agostini and MV were so dominant that he won every 350cc and 500cc race in those 3 seasons except for the last 2 races in 1969 and the last race in 1970.[6] At the time, the Isle of Man TT and the Ulster Grands Prix were dominated by British and Irish riders; Agostini was the first and only European continental rider who dominated the TT in successive years; he won the Senior TT 5 consecutive times from 1968 to 1972 and the Junior TT 5 out of 6 years from 1967 to 1972- only missing out in 1971 when his chain broke at Ramsey. Later, Agostini had the hump after Bray Hill named “Ago’s Leap” after him, in reference to a famous photo of him riding through there. In addition to Agostini's successes at the TT he also won seven Ulster Grand Prix races. In1967 he battled Hailwood in one of the most dramatic seasons in Grand Prix history.[5] Each rider had five victories before the championship was decided in Agostini's favor at the last race of the season.[5]
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After the death of his close friend,Gilberto Parlotti during the1972 TT, Agostini announced he would never again compete in the event.[5] He considered the 37.73 mile circuit unsafe for world championship competition. At the time, the TT was the most prestigious race on the motorcycling calendar.[7] This decision had far reaching consequences for the TT and would lead to a walk-out of the top Grand Prix stars, many of whom resorted to severe criticism of the organisation and safety at the event, with people such asPhil Read in thevanguard of the critics.[8][9]
In response, theFédération Internationale de Motocyclisme decided that theIsle of Man TT would be withdrawn from the World Championship calendar after the1976 races.[9] Agostini maintained that he did not object to the event itself, but that he only opposed riders being contractually required to enter such a dangerous race as part of a World Championship campaign.[7]
By 1972, advancements in two-stroke engine technology were made obvious as Yamaha and their top riderJarno Saarinen began to challenge Agostini and the dominant MV Agusta team for the first time in years. Saarinen won three races in the1972 350cc World Championship, including a victory at the West German Grand Prix where he gave Agostini his first defeat in a head-to-head race since the 1967 Canadian Grand Prix.[10] Agostini was able to successfully claim his fifth consecutive 350cc World Championship in 1972 however, the increasing threat from Yamaha's performance was so strong that the MV Agusta factory was forced to produce a new 350cc motorcycle for Agostini and to hire Phil Read as his teammate.[5]
In1973, Yamaha developed a new 4-cylinder two-strokeYamaha YZR500 motorcycle for Saarinen and he began the 500cc World Championship with victories in France and Austria while Agostini had to withdraw with mechanical issues.[10] Yamaha and Saarinen were leading the World Championship when an accident at the 1973 Nations Grand Prix claimed the lives of Saarinen andRenzo Pasolini. The loss of Saarinen caused Yamaha to withdraw their team from the World Championship out of respect for their fallen rider.[10]
Agostini's mechanical issues along with the cancelation of the 500cc Nations Grand Prix after Saarinen's death and the subsequent boycott of the Yugoslavian Grand Prix over unsafe conditions meant that he didn't score any points in the first seven races of the year. In the final five races of the season, Agostini took three victories however, he was unable to overcome his early season points deficit which allowed his teammate Read to win his first World Championship in the premier 500cc division. In the 350cc class, he successfully fended off a challenge from Yamaha'sTeuvo Länsivuori to win his sixth consecutive 350cc World Championship.
Agostini was frustrated with MV Agusta's lack of development and the growing threat of Japanese two-stroke technology, so he made the decision to join theYamaha factory racing team for the1974 season. On his first outing for the Japanese factory, he won theDaytona 200, helping to cement the race's reputation as one of the most prestigious in the world.[11][12][13] He went on to claim the1974 350cc World Championship but injuries and mechanical problems kept him from winning the 500cc crown. He rebounded and won the1975 500cc title, marking the first time atwo-stroke machine won the premier class.
The 1975 championship was Agostini's last. In1976, he rode both Yamaha and MV bikes in the 500cc class, yet raced only once in the 350cc to win in Assen. For the challengingNürburgring, he chose the 500cc MV Agusta and took it to victory, winning the last Grand Prix for both himself, the marque and the last forfour-stroke engines in the 500cc class.
Agostini retired from motorcycle competition after finishing 6th in the1977 season in which he also raced in 750cc endurance races for Yamaha.[5]
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LikeJean-Pierre Beltoise,John Surtees andMike Hailwood before him, Agostini raced inFormula One cars. He competed in non-championship Formula One races in 1978. He competed in the EuropeanFormula 2 series in aChevron B42-BMW andBritish Aurora Formula 1 with his own team and aWilliams FW06. He ended his auto racing career in 1980.[14]
In1982, Agostini returned to motorcycle racing as theMarlboroYamaha team manager. In this role, he won three 500cc titles withEddie Lawson and managed many successful riders includingGraeme Crosby andKenny Roberts. Under his management riders won the 1982 Daytona Formula 1 (Crosby), 1983 and 1984 Daytona Formula 1 (Roberts) and 1986 Daytona Superbike championships (Lawson).Between1986 and1990, he also managed the Marlboro Yamaha 250cc team with riders likeLuca Cadalora,Martin Wimmer andÀlex Crivillé.
Since1992, Agostini served as theCagiva factory racing team manager until1994, when Cagiva withdrew from the world championship.Agostini's last season as team manager was1995 when he managed a 250cc Honda team withDoriano Romboni as rider.
Source:[2]
Points system from 1964 to 1968:
| Position | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| Points | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Points system from 1969 onwards:
| Position | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| Points | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Year | Class | Bike | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Pts | Pos |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 750cc | Yamaha | USA 4 | ITA 1 | ITA 2 | BEL 1 | BEL 2 | FRA 1 | FRA 2 | SWE 1 | SWE 2 | FIN 1 | FIN 2 | SIL 1 | SIL 2 | NED 1 | NED 2 | GER 1 | GER 2 | 8 | 21st | ||
| 1976 | 750cc | Yamaha | USA | VEN 1 | VEN 2 | ITA 1 | ITA 2 | ESP 1 | ESP 2 | BEL 1 | BEL 2 | FRA 1 | FRA 2 3 | SIL 1 | SIL 2 | NED 1 | NED 2 1 | GER 1 | GER 2 | 12 | 18th | ||
| 1977 | 750cc | Yamaha | USA | ITA 1 | ITA 2 3 | ESP | FRA 1 | FRA 2 | GBR 1 | GBR 2 | AUT 2 | BEL 1 | BEL 2 | NED 1 4 | NED 2 4 | USA 1 | USA 2 | CAN 1 | CAN 2 | GER 1 1 | GER 2 1 | 45 | 3rd |
(key)
| Year[14] | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Pos | Pts. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Giacomo Agostini | WilliamsFW06 | Cosworth | ZOL 9 | OUL 6 | BRH 5 | MAL Ret | SNE 2 | THR 6 | ZAN 3 | DON 9 | OUL 3 | NOG Ret | MAL Ret | BRH Ret | THR 6 | SNE 7 | SIL 7 | 8th | 19 |
| 1980 | Giacomo Agostini | WilliamsFW06 | Cosworth | OUL | BRH 4 | SIL Ret | MAL | THR 4 | MNZ 3 | MAL | SNE Ret | BRH 3 | THR 3 | OUL | SIL 3 | 5th | 22 |
| Preceded by | 500cc Motorcycle World Champion 1966–1972 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | 500cc Motorcycle World Champion 1975 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | 350cc Motorcycle World Champion 1968–1974 | Succeeded by |
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