1988 French motorcycle Grand Prix

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The 1988 French motorcycle Grand Prix was the eleventh round of the 1988 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of 22nd-24th July, 1988 at the Paul Ricard circuit.

[edit] 500 cc race report

Christian Sarron’s 5th pole in a row, and his last ever in 500 GP.

Niall Mackenzie gets the start, and through the Mistral Straight for the first time it’s Wayne Gardner, Kevin Schwantz, Mackenzie, Wayne Rainey, et al. At the start of the 2nd lap it’s Gardner, Sarron, Schwantz, Rainey, ….

Shunji Yatsushiro and Patrick Igoa collide and crash out.

Sarron moves to the front, Eddie Lawson to 4th.

The quartet of Gardner, Lawson, Sarron and Schwantz leave Rainey behind.

Going into the last lap, it seems Lawson has made a mistake, because Gardner has a gap and looks certain to take the win, but he has a breakdown and struggles home to a 4th place.

[edit] 500cc classification

Pos Rider Manufacturer Time/Retired Points
1 Flag of the United States Eddie Lawson Yamaha 42:15.520 20
2 Flag of France Christian Sarron Yamaha +0.220 17
3 Flag of the United States Kevin Schwantz Suzuki +0.460 15
4 Flag of Australia Wayne Gardner Honda +5.720 13
5 Flag of the United States Wayne Rainey Yamaha +17.630 11
6 Flag of the United States Randy Mamola Cagiva +27.810 10
7 Flag of Belgium Didier de Radiguès Yamaha +30.620 9
8 Flag of Italy Pierfrancesco Chili Honda +30.870 8
9 Flag of Australia Kevin Magee Yamaha +35.110 7
10 Flag of the United Kingdom Ron Haslam Elf Honda +35.310 6
11 Flag of the United Kingdom Rob McElnea Suzuki +59.870 5
12 Flag of Australia Malcolm Campbell Elf Honda +1:19.040 4
13 Flag of the United States Mike Baldwin Honda +1:42.640 3
14 Flag of Italy Alessandro Valesi Honda +1:46.140 2
15 Flag of San Marino Fabio Barchitta Honda +2:02.540 1
16 Flag of the United Kingdom Donnie McLeod Honda +1 Lap
17 Flag of Switzerland Marco Gentile Fior +1 Lap
18 Flag of Italy Marco Papa Honda +1 Lap
19 Flag of Italy Fabio Biliotti Honda +1 Lap
20 Flag of Germany Manfred Fischer Honda +1 Lap
21 Flag of Ireland Eddie Laycock Honda +1 Lap
22 Flag of France Claude Arciero Honda +1 Lap
23 Flag of Switzerland Nicholas Schmassman Honda +1 Lap
24 Flag of the Netherlands Maarten Duyzers Honda +1 Lap
Ret Flag of France Patrick Igoa Yamaha Retirement
Ret Flag of France Rachel Nicotte Honda Retirement
Ret Flag of Spain Daniel Amatriain Honda Retirement
Ret Flag of France Thierry Rapicault Fior Retirement
Ret Flag of Switzerland Bruno Kneubuhler Honda Retirement
Ret Flag of Switzerland Wolfgang von Muralt Suzuki Retirement
Ret Flag of the United Kingdom Niall Mackenzie Honda Retirement
Ret Flag of Japan Shunji Yatsushiro Honda Retirement
Ret Flag of France Raymond Roche Cagiva Retirement
Ret Flag of France Eric Sabatier Honda Retirement
Ret Flag of France Jean Luc Demierre Suzuki Retirement
Ret Flag of Italy Vittorio Scatola Suzuki Retirement


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1988 Yugoslavian Grand Prix		 FIM MotoGP World Championship
1988 season		 Next race:
1988 British Grand Prix
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1987 French Grand Prix		 French motorcycle Grand Prix Next race:
1989 French Grand Prix
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