Like in 1975, for example, when a historic Grand Prix was held in France at the Castellet. With the debut of Cecotto who triumphed in two classes, with the Yamaha 500s that demolished the MVs, with the Morbidelli 125s… And I was there
March 22, 2023
The season hasn’t started here in Europe for a long time: as you know traditionally Qatar kicked off the dance, since 2007. The last country of the Old Continent to give the green light was Spain in 2006; before that it had been South Africa, Japan, Malaysia, Australia…
Among the inaugural European GPs, alive in my memories is that of France at the Castellet, March 30, 1975. It was my first ever GP as a rider and one of the very first I witnessed in person. And this Grand Prix has gone down in history, naturally thanks to many other protagonists.
Johnny Cecotto the first. It was a shock to see this 19-year-old Venezuelan, plunged into the world championship thanks to his country’s Yamaha importer, Ippolito, triumph in the 250 against the official Yamaha rider Takai (passed on the last lap). The primacy of earliness belonged to Hailwood and Cecotto took it by authority.
Ma immediately after Johnny also won in the 350, playing His Majesty Agostini! It went like this: Johnny immediately made himself noticed with pole position while Ago, reigning world champion of the category, started from the third box. Then in the race Cecotto gave Mino a good 25 seconds, there was really no battle, and at the end of the season the very strong Venezuelan was the world champion.
Ago took his satisfaction in the 500, with that world title that in the first year on the official Yamahas (1974) he had missed due to a lot of trouble. Since his debut in 1975, there in France, he dominated by bringing his faithful squire Kanaya with him. And the one won by Agostini was the first 500cc title for a Japanese manufacturer and the first two-stroke…
What 500! Yamaha canceled the MV
Fifty members and no less than forty starters in the half-litre. With the ex-Findlay twin-cylinder Suzuki Jada I started decidedly behind, in twenty-ninth position, but ahead of Findlay and Mandracci with the twin-cylinder Yamahas increased to 351. Lansivuori was in pole position, then retired.
Push start: I sprinted last, damn it, so far from everyone that my friends at the wall (Bruno Sacchi and Silvano Bonizzi) put away the blackboard and everything. In any case, I tried to recover a few positions and would have finished nineteenth and penultimate after one lap; these were bad times for the few private riders: Guido Mandracci withdrew, Mario Lega twenty-third and last in the 250, Proni thirty-second in the 350…
Ago and Kanaya doubled me on the straight of the Mistral. One following the other, on the two thousand meters of the French straight they were speeding around 280 per hour, I maybe at 230. Then after a few laps I heard a crash behind me and I stepped aside: Read and Ramon Toracca, who replaced the injured Bonera, mortified me on the two MVs; they then closed the race half a minute behind the Yamahas.
That was a historic day also in 125, where the overpowering twin-cylinder Morbidellis of Pileri and Bianchi, after having dominated the trials, battled and fell together! Giancarlo Morbidelli wanted to fire them on the spot, Jorg Moeller made peace. Paolo Pileri managed to finish, third behind the two Yamahas of the Swedes Andersson and Gustafsson, then it would be the Rimini-born Pier Paolo Bianchi who won the world title in a big way.
