Phil Read

Infobox Former Grand Prix motorcycle rider


|Caption = Phil Read on the Austrian Salzburgring.
Name = Phil Read
Nationality = flagicon|UK British
Years = 1961 - 1976
Teams = Yamaha, MV Agusta
Races = 113
Championships = 125cc - 1968-250cc - 1964,1965,1968,1971-500cc- 1973, 1974
Wins = 52
Podiums = 121
Points =
Poles = 5
Fastest laps = 1
First race = 1961 350cc Isle of Man TT
First win = 1961 350cc Isle of Man TT
Last win = 1975 500cc Czechoslovakian Grand Prix
Last race = 1976 500cc Nations Grand PrixInfobox TT rider


Name = Phil Read
Caption =
Nicknames = Readie, The Prince Of Speed
Nationality = flagicon|ENG English
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 January 1, 1939 in Luton, England) is an English former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer nicknamed "The Prince of Speed." 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.

Biography

In 1964, he gave Yamaha their first world title when he won the 250cc class. He would repeat as champion the following year. 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.

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. 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.

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 a heavily modified privateer Yamaha with no factory support. On this bike he was able to claim his fifth world championship.

In 1972 he was given a ride with the MV Agusta team and in 1973, he took the 500cc world championship. He successfully defended his crown in 1974 in what would be the last world championship for the legendary Italian marque. 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. 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. The FIM named him a Grand Prix "Legend" in 2002.

Motorcycle Grand Prix results

Reference

* [http://www.motogp.com/en/MotoGP+Legends/profiles/Phil+Read Phil Read career statistics at MotoGP.com]