Freddie Frith

Frederick Lee "Freddie" Frith OBE (born 30 May 1909 - 24 May 1988 in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, England) was a British former Grand Prix motorcycle road racing world champion.^[1] A former stonemason and motor-trader dealer was a stylish rider and five times winner of the Isle of Man TT. Frith had the distinction of being one of the few to win TT races before and after the Second World War.^[2]

He won the 1935 Junior Manx Grand Prix and then joined the Norton team for the 1936 TT Races. It was a winning combination as he claimed the Junior TT and finished second in the Senior TT as well as winning the 350cc European Championship . In 1937 he went one better in the Senior and took a brilliant win and setting the first 90 mph plus lap of the Snaefell Mountain Course.

After finishing third in the 1939 Senior he missed the 1947 TT due to a practice spill on a 500cc Moto Guzzi. Turning to Velocettes in 1948 he won the Junior Race, repeating this success a year later. Freddie also has the distinction of being the first ever 350cc World Champion in 1949 when, he won all five events of the inaugural campaign.

Freddie Frith, alongside other Riders from BSA; Ariel and Matchless Works teams, served in the army during World War 2 at the Infantry Driving & Maintenance School stationed at Keswick. They taught officers and NCOs how to ride cross-country. Sgt. Freddie Frith taught teams of four on Norton 500cc over Skiddaw in all weathers. A special treat on the last day was reserved for roadwork, following Freddie's track fast-cornering .

Motorcycle Grand Prix results

1949 point system

Position	1	2	3	4	5	Fastest lap
Points	10	8	7	6	5	1

(key) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Class	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	Points	Rank	Wins
1949	350cc	Velocette	IOM 1	SUI 1	NED 1	BEL 1	ULS 1		33	1st	5
1949	500cc	Velocette	IOM NC	SUI 5	NED -	BEL -	ULS -	NAT -	5	11th	0

Sources

↑ Freddie Frith career statistics at MotoGP.com
↑ Keig, Stanley Robertson (1975). The Keig Collection: six hundred photographs from the Manx House of Keig of T.T. riders and their machines from 1911 to 1939, vol 1. Bruce Main-Smith & Co. pp.28-29 ISBN 0-904365-05-0

External links

TT database rider profile iomtt.com
TT database TT results iomtt.com

Sporting positions
Preceded by Wal Handley	350cc Motorcycle European Champion 1936	Succeeded by Jimmie Guthrie
Preceded by Fergus Anderson	350cc Motorcycle European Champion 1948	Succeeded by None
Preceded by None	350cc Motorcycle World Champion 1949	Succeeded by Bob Foster

350cc Motorcycle World Champions

1949 - F. Frith

1950 - B. Foster
1951 - G. Duke
1952 - G. Duke
1953 - F. Anderson
1954 - F. Anderson
1955 - B. Lomas
1956 - B. Lomas
1957 - K. Campbell
1958 - J. Surtees
1959 - J. Surtees

1960 - J. Surtees
1961 - G. Hocking
1962 - J. Redman
1963 - J. Redman
1964 - J. Redman
1965 - J. Redman
1966 - M. Hailwood
1967 - M. Hailwood
1968 - G. Agostini
1969 - G. Agostini

1970 - G. Agostini
1971 - G. Agostini
1972 - G. Agostini
1973 - G. Agostini
1974 - G. Agostini
1975 - J. Cecotto
1976 - W. Villa
1977 - T. Katayama
1978 - K. Ballington
1979 - K. Ballington

1980 - J. Ekerold
1981 - A. Mang
1982 - A. Mang

v t e 350 cc Motorcycle European Champions

1924 Jimmie Simpson 1925 Tazio Nuvolari 1926 Frank Longman 1927 Jimmie Simpson 1928 Wal Handley 1929 Leo Davenport 1930 Ernie Nott 1931 Ernie Nott 1932 Louis Jeannin 1933 Jimmie Simpson 1934 Jimmie Simpson 1935 Wal Handley 1936 Freddie Frith 1937 Jimmie Guthrie 1938 Ted Mellors 1939 Heiner Fleischmann 1947 Fergus Anderson 1948 Freddie Frith

Persondata
Name	Frith, Freddie
Alternative names
Short description	British motorcycle racer
Date of birth	30 May 1909
Place of birth
Date of death	24 May 1988
Place of death

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