Phil Read

Phil Read
Phil Read on the Austrian Salzburgring.
Nationality	British
Motorcycle racing career statistics Grand Prix motorcycle racing Active years 1961 - 1976 First race 1961 350cc Isle of Man TT Last race 1976 500cc Nations Grand Prix First win 1961 350cc Isle of Man TT Last win 1975 500cc Czechoslovakian Grand Prix Team(s) Yamaha, MV Agusta Championships 125cc - 1968 250cc - 1964, 1965, 1968, 1971 500cc- 1973, 1974 Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 152 52 121 4 31 Isle of Man TT career TTs contested 14 (1961 - 1973, 1977) TT wins 8 First TT win 1961 Junior TT Last TT win 1977 Senior TT Podiums 13

For the Australian rules footballer, see Phil Read (footballer).

Phillip William Read (born 1 January 1939 in Luton, England) is an English former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer nicknamed "The Prince of Speed."^[1] Although he would often be overshadowed by his contemporary, Mike Hailwood, he would become the first man to win world championships in the 125cc, 250cc and 500cc classes.^[1][2]

Contents 1 Biography 2 Grand Prix motorcycle racing results[2][4] 3 External links 4 References

Biography

In 1964, he gave Yamaha their first world title when he won the 250cc class.^[2] He would repeat as champion the following year.^[2] For 1966, Yamaha would introduce a new, four cylinder 250cc bike. Teething problems with the new engine meant he would lose the crown to Hailwood. In 1967 he would battle Hailwood on his six-cylinder Honda all the way to the final round. They would end up tied but, Hailwood took the crown due to having five wins to Read's four.^[2]

The 1968 season proved to be controversial for Read. The Yamaha factory had wanted Read to concentrate on winning the 125cc title and team-mate Bill Ivy to take the 250cc crown. After winning the 125cc championship, Read decided to disobey team orders and fight Ivy for the 250cc title.^[1] They finished the season tied in the points and Read was awarded the championship based on elapsed times. It was a costly decision as Yamaha would never offer him another ride.^[1]

After sitting out most of the 1969 and 1970 seasons when the major Japanese factories all withdrew from Grand Prix racing, he returned in 1971 on an Eric Cheney-modified, privateer Yamaha with no factory support.^[3] On this bike he was able to claim his fifth world championship.^[2]

In 1972 he was given a ride with the MV Agusta team and in 1973, he took the 500cc world championship.^[2] He successfully defended his crown in 1974 in what would be the last world championship for the legendary Italian marque.^[2] It would also be the last time a four-stroke machine would win a title until the advent of the MotoGP class in 2002.

He would give Agostini's Yamaha a strong fight for the 1975 500cc championship but finished in second place.^[2] Realizing the writing was on the wall for four-stroke machinery, he left the Italian company to campaign a privateer Suzuki in the 1976 season after which, he retired from Grand Prix racing. His last race was at the Isle of Man TT in 1982 at the age of 43.^[4] The FIM named him a Grand Prix "Legend" in 2002.^[5]

A less well-known aspect of Read's career was his involvement in endurance racing. He rode a Honda in the 24-hour Bol d'Or endurance race at Le Mans; and he was a two-time winner of the Thruxton 500 endurance race.

Grand Prix motorcycle racing results^[2][4]

Points system from 1950 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

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Class	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	Points	Rank	Wins
1961	125cc	EMC	ESP -	GER -	FRA -	IOM NC	NED 4	BEL -	DDR -	ULS -	NAT -	SWE -	ARG -			3	12th	0
	350cc	Norton		GER -		IOM 1	NED 4		DDR -	ULS 4	NAT -	SWE -				13	5th	1
	500cc	Norton		GER -	FRA -	IOM NC	NED 4	BEL -	DDR -	ULS -	NAT -	SWE -	ARG -			3	15th	0
1962	350cc	Norton	IOM 7	NED 6		ULS -	DDR -	NAT -	FIN -							1	15th	0
	500cc	Norton	IOM NC	NED 3	BEL -	ULS 3	DDR -	NAT 4	FIN -	ARG -						11	3rd	0
1963	250cc	Yamaha	ESP -	GER -	IOM -	NED -	BEL -	ULS -	DDR -	NAT -		ARG -	JPN 3			4	10th	0
	350cc	Gilera		GER 3	IOM NC	NED -		ULS -	DDR -	NAT -	FIN -		JPN -			4	11th	0
	500cc	Gilera			IOM 3	NED 2	BEL 2	ULS -	DDR -	NAT -	FIN -	ARG -	JPN -			16	4th	0
1964	125cc	Yamaha	USA -	ESP -	FRA -	IOM -	NED 2		GER -	DDR -	ULS -	FIN -	NAT -	JPN -		6	8th	0
	250cc	Yamaha	USA -	ESP 3	FRA 1	IOM NC	NED 2	BEL -	GER 1	DDR 1	ULS 1		NAT 1	JPN -		46	1st	5
	350cc	AJS				IOM 2	NED -		GER -	DDR -	ULS -	FIN -	NAT -	JPN -		6	6th	0
	500cc	Matchless	USA 2			IOM NC	NED 6	BEL 2	GER 3	DDR -						25	3rd	1
		Norton									ULS 1	FIN -	NAT -	JPN -
1965	125cc	Yamaha	USA -	GER -	ESP -	FRA -	IOM 1	NED -		DDR -	CZE -	ULS -	FIN -	NAT -	JPN -	8	10th	1
	250cc	Yamaha	USA 1	GER 1	ESP 1	FRA 1	IOM NC	NED 1	BEL 2	DDR 2	CZE 1	ULS 1	FIN -	NAT -	JPN -	56	1st	7
	350cc	Yamaha		GER -			IOM 2	NED -		DDR -	CZE -	ULS -	FIN -	NAT -	JPN -	6	9th	0
1966	125cc	Yamaha	ESP 4	GER 3		NED 3		DDR 4	CZE -	FIN 1	ULS 3	IOM 2	NAT 4	JPN 5		29	4th	1
	250cc	Yamaha	ESP 3	GER -	FRA -	NED 2	BEL 2	DDR 2	CZE 2	FIN -	ULS -	IOM NC	NAT -	JPN 2		34	2nd	0
	350cc	Yamaha		GER -	FRA -	NED -		DDR -	CZE -	FIN -	ULS -	IOM -	NAT -	JPN 1		8	8th	1
1967	125cc	Yamaha	ESP 2	GER -	FRA 2	IOM 1	NED 1	BEL -	DDR 2	CZE -	FIN -	ULS 2	NAT -	CAN -	JPN -	40	2nd	2
	250cc	Yamaha	ESP 1	GER 2	FRA 2	IOM 2	NED -	BEL -	DDR 1	CZE 1	FIN -	ULS -	NAT 1	CAN 2	JPN -	50	2nd	4
1968	125cc	Yamaha	GER 1	ESP -	IOM 1	NED 1		DDR 1	CZE 1	FIN 1	ULS 2	NAT 2				40	1st	6
	250cc	Yamaha	GER -	ESP 1	IOM NC	NED 2	BEL 1	DDR 2	CZE 1	FIN 1	ULS -	NAT 1				46	1st	5
1969	250cc	Yamaha	ESP -	GER -	FRA -	IOM NC	NED -	BEL -	DDR -	CZE -	FIN -	ULS -	NAT 1	YUG -		15	13th	1
	350cc	Yamaha	ESP -	GER -		IOM NC	NED -		DDR -	CZE -	FIN -	ULS -	NAT 1	YUG -		15	13th	1
1970	250cc	Yamaha	GER -	FRA -	YUG -	IOM -	NED 2	BEL -	DDR -	CZE -	FIN -	ULS -	NAT 3	ESP -		22	12th	0
	350cc	Yamaha	GER -		YUG -	IOM -	NED 3		DDR -	CZE -	FIN -	ULS -	NAT -	ESP -		10	17th	0
1971	250cc	Yamaha	AUT -	GER 1	IOM 1	NED 1	BEL -	DDR 3	CZE -	SWE -	FIN 10	ULS -	NAT 6	ESP 2		73	1st	3
	350cc	Yamaha	AUT -	GER -	IOM NC	NED 2		DDR -	CZE -	SWE -	FIN -	ULS -	NAT -	ESP -		12	16th	0
	500cc	Ducati	AUT -	GER -	IOM -	NED -	BEL -	DDR -		SWE -	FIN -	ULS -	NAT 4	ESP -		8	18th	0
1972	250cc	Yamaha	GER -	FRA 1	AUT -	NAT -	IOM 1	YUG -	NED 4	BEL 3	DDR -	CZE 3	SWE -	FIN -	ESP -	58	4th	2
	350cc	MV Agusta	GER -	FRA -	AUT -	NAT 4	IOM NC	YUG 3	NED 5		DDR 1	CZE -	SWE 2	FIN -	ESP -	51	5th	1
1973	350cc	MV Agusta	FRA 2	AUT -	GER -	NAT -	IOM -	YUG -	NED 2		CZE 3	SWE 3	FIN 2	ESP -		56	3rd	0
	500cc	MV Agusta	FRA 2	AUT -	GER 1		IOM -	YUG -	NED 1	BEL 2	CZE 2	SWE 1	FIN 2	ESP 1		84	1st	4
1974	500cc	MV Agusta	FRA 1	GER -	AUT -	NAT 3	IOM -	NED 3	BEL 1	SWE 2	FIN 1	CZE 1				82	1st	4
1975	500cc	MV Agusta	FRA 3	AUT 3	GER 2	NAT 2	IOM -	NED 3	BEL 1	SWE 2	FIN -	CZE 1				76	2nd	2
1976	500cc	Suzuki	FRA Ret	AUT 3	NAT 2	IOM -	NED -	BEL -	SWE -	FIN -	CZE -	GER -				22	10th	0

External links

• Phil Read official web site
• MotoGP Legends at MotoGP.com
• Phil Read career statistics at MotoGP.com
• Phil Read at iomtt.com

References

Sporting positions
Preceded by Giacomo Agostini	500cc Motorcycle World Champion 1973-1974	Succeeded by Giacomo Agostini
Preceded by None	TT Formula One World Champion 1977	Succeeded by Mike Hailwood

500cc/MotoGP Motorcycle World Champions     1949 – L. Graham 1950 – U. Masetti 1951 – G. Duke 1952 – U. Masetti 1953 – G. Duke 1954 – G. Duke 1955 – G. Duke 1956 – J. Surtees 1957 – L. Liberati 1958 – J. Surtees 1959 – J. Surtees 1960 – J. Surtees 1961 – G. Hocking 1962 – M. Hailwood 1963 – M. Hailwood 1964 – M. Hailwood 1965 – M. Hailwood 1966 – G. Agostini 1967 – G. Agostini 1968 – G. Agostini 1969 – G. Agostini 1970 – G. Agostini 1971 – G. Agostini 1972 – G. Agostini 1973 – P. Read 1974 – P. Read 1975 – G. Agostini 1976 – B. Sheene 1977 – B. Sheene 1978 – K. Roberts 1979 – K. Roberts 1980 – K. Roberts 1981 – M. Lucchinelli 1982 – F. Uncini 1983 – F. Spencer 1984 – E. Lawson 1985 – F. Spencer 1986 – E. Lawson 1987 – W. Gardner 1988 – E. Lawson 1989 – E. Lawson 1990 – W. Rainey 1991 – W. Rainey 1992 – W. Rainey 1993 – K. Schwantz 1994 – M. Doohan 1995 – M. Doohan 1996 – M. Doohan 1997 – M. Doohan 1998 – M. Doohan 1999 – À. Crivillé 2000 – K. Roberts, Jr. 2001 – V. Rossi 2002 – V. Rossi 2003 – V. Rossi 2004 – V. Rossi 2005 – V. Rossi 2006 – N. Hayden 2007 – C. Stoner 2008 – V. Rossi 2009 – V. Rossi 2010 – J. Lorenzo 2011 – C. Stoner

250cc/Moto2 Motorcycle World Champions     1949 – B. Ruffo 1950 – D. Ambrosini 1951 – B. Ruffo 1952 – E. Lorenzetti 1953 – W. Haas 1954 – W. Haas 1955 – H. Müller 1956 – C. Ubbiali 1957 – C. Sandford 1958 – T. Provini 1959 – C. Ubbiali 1960 – C. Ubbiali 1961 – M. Hailwood 1962 – J. Redman 1963 – J. Redman 1964 – P. Read 1965 – P. Read 1966 – M. Hailwood 1967 – M. Hailwood 1968 – P. Read 1969 – K. Carruthers 1970 – R. Gould 1971 – P. Read 1972 – J. Saarinen 1973 – D. Braun 1974 – W. Villa 1975 – W. Villa 1976 – W. Villa 1977 – M. Lega 1978 – K. Ballington 1979 – K. Ballington 1980 – A. Mang 1981 – A. Mang 1982 – J. Tournadre 1983 – C. Lavado 1984 – C. Sarron 1985 – F. Spencer 1986 – C. Lavado 1987 – A. Mang 1988 – S. Pons 1989 – S. Pons 1990 – J. Kocinski 1991 – L. Cadalora 1992 – L. Cadalora 1993 – T. Harada 1994 – M. Biaggi 1995 – M. Biaggi 1996 – M. Biaggi 1997 – M. Biaggi 1998 – L. Capirossi 1999 – V. Rossi 2000 – O. Jacque 2001 – D. Kato 2002 – M. Melandri 2003 – M. Poggiali 2004 – D. Pedrosa 2005 – D. Pedrosa 2006 – J. Lorenzo 2007 – J. Lorenzo 2008 – M. Simoncelli 2009 – H. Aoyama 2010 – T. Elías 2011 – S. Bradl

125cc Motorcycle World Champions     1949 – N. Pagani 1950 – B. Ruffo 1951 – C. Ubbiali 1952 – C. Sandford 1953 – W. Haas 1954 – R. Hollaus 1955 – C. Ubbiali 1956 – C. Ubbiali 1957 – T. Provini 1958 – C. Ubbiali 1959 – C. Ubbiali 1960 – C. Ubbiali 1961 – T. Phillis 1962 – L. Taveri 1963 – H. Anderson 1964 – L. Taveri 1965 – H. Anderson 1966 – L. Taveri 1967 – B. Ivy 1968 – P. Read 1969 – D. Simmonds 1970 – D. Braun 1971 – Á. Nieto 1972 – Á. Nieto 1973 – K. Andersson 1974 – K. Andersson 1975 – P. Pileri 1976 – P. Bianchi 1977 – P. Bianchi 1978 – E. Lazzarini 1979 – Á. Nieto 1980 – P. Bianchi 1981 – Á. Nieto 1982 – Á. Nieto 1983 – Á. Nieto 1984 – Á. Nieto 1985 – F. Gresini 1986 – L. Cadalora 1987 – F. Gresini 1988 – J. Martínez 1989 – À. Crivillé 1990 – L. Capirossi 1991 – L. Capirossi 1992 – A. Gramigni 1993 – D. Raudies 1994 – K. Sakata 1995 – H. Aoki 1996 – H. Aoki 1997 – V. Rossi 1998 – K. Sakata 1999 – E. Alzamora 2000 – R. Locatelli 2001 – M. Poggiali 2002 – A. Vincent 2003 – D. Pedrosa 2004 – A. Dovizioso 2005 – T. Lüthi 2006 – Á. Bautista 2007 – G. Talmácsi 2008 – M. Di Meglio 2009 – J. Simón 2010 – M. Márquez 2011 – N. Terol

Persondata
Name	Read, Phil
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1 January 1939
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death