1989 Nations motorcycle Grand Prix

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  1989 Italian Motorcycle Grand Prix

Race details
Race of races in the 1989 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season.
Date	14 May 1989
Location	Misano
Course	Permanent racing facility mi / km
MotoGP
Pole Position Fastest Lap Podium 1. 2. 3.
250 cc
Pole Position Fastest Lap Podium 1. 2. 3.
125 cc
Pole Position Fastest Lap Podium 1. 2. 3.

The 1989 Nations motorcycle Grand Prix was the fifth race of the 1989 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of 12th–14th May, 1989 at the Misano circuit.

[edit] 500 cc race report

Before the race, riders are concerned about the track surface, considering it too slippery, and should it rain, even dangerous.

Dry track and dark clouds for the green light with Kevin Schwantz on pole. Pierfrancesco Chili gets a good start and leads briefly, then Schwantz, Wayne Rainey and Christian Sarron settle into the lead. Before long, the rain starts and Schwantz raises his hand to stop the race.

The top riders have a meeting and decide they want a practice session before re-starting in the wet, but the request is refused by the race organizers and they decide to boycott the race. Eddie Lawson says, "This is place is unique in that the track surface is very, very slippery, and when it has water on it you can’t ride on it. All the top riders felt it was too dangerous, and it is, and so we didn’t ride. It’s as simple as that. … We go to plenty of racetracks where we test all week, in the sunshine, and then it starts to rain; well, we put rain tires on and we race. This place, you can’t do that. Regardless of not testing or anything else, you just can’t ride in the wet, it’s just too dangerous. It was unfortunate."^[1]

A notable dissenter is Chili, who wants to race, along with other riders. Chili manages to stay upright in the downpour and wins the race, with Lawson sarcastically cheering from the stands and Sarron blowing a kiss.

[edit] 500cc classification

Pos	Rider	Manufacturer	Time/Retired	Points
1	Pierfrancesco Chili	Honda	59:21.035	20
2	Damon Buckmaster	Honda	+32.271	17
3	Michael Rudroff	Honda	+32.599	15
4	Marco Gentile	Fior	+1:32.451	13
5	Josef Doppler	Honda	+1:51.120	11
6	Alois Meyer	Honda	+1 Lap	10
7	Romolo Balbi	Honda	+1 Lap	9
8	Francisco Gonzales	Honda	+1 Lap	8
9	Andreas Leuthe	Suzuki	+2 Laps	7
10	Nicholas Schmassman	Honda	+2 Laps	6
Ret	Christian Sarron	Yamaha	Retirement
Ret	Raymond Roche	Cagiva	Retirement
Ret	Alessandro Valesi	Yamaha	Retirement
Ret	Norihiko Fujiwara	Yamaha	Retirement
Ret	Freddie Spencer	Yamaha	Retirement
Ret	Ron Haslam	Suzuki	Retirement
Ret	Eddie Lawson	Honda	Retirement
Ret	Wayne Rainey	Yamaha	Retirement
Ret	Juan Lopez Mella	Honda	Retirement
Ret	Massimo Broccoli	Cagiva	Retirement
Ret	Kevin Schwantz	Suzuki	Retirement
Ret	Rob McElnea	Honda	Retirement
Ret	Stefan Klabacher	Honda	Retirement
Ret	Dominique Sarron	Honda	Retirement
Ret	Vittorio Scatola	Suzuki	Retirement
Ret	Moreno Vacondio	Suzuki	Retirement
Ret	Bruno Kneubuhler	Honda	Retirement
Ret	Fred Merkel	Honda	Retirement
Ret	Niall Mackenzie	Yamaha	Retirement
Ret	Claude Albert	Suzuki	Retirement
Ret	Marco Papa	Paton	Retirement
Ret	Randy Mamola	Cagiva	Retirement
Ret	Mick Doohan	Honda	Retirement

[edit] References

1. ^ Duke Video: "Bike GP 500 Review". Videocassette.

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Previous race: 1988 Nations Grand Prix	Nations Grand Prix	Next race: 1990 Nations Grand Prix