German motorcycle Grand Prix

The German motorcycle Grand Prix, first held in 1925, is since 1952 part of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Championship.

History

Since the 1920s, the "Großer Preis von Deutschland" races were held at Berlin's AVUS, the purpose-built Nürburgring in Western Germany, and then until 1939 on public roads near Hohenstein-Ernstthal in Saxony that were called Sachsenring.

After the war, in 1949, two German states were founded, and the FIM introduced a motorcycle World Championship in which neither Germans nor German race tracks could participate due to being banned until 1952. In the (Western) Federal Republic of Germany, a strong motorcycle industry (NSU, DKW etc.) emerged in the early 1950s, as cars were not yet affordable. With the Sachsenring being now in the (Eastern) German Democratic Republic (GDR), new tracks were needed, as the Nürburgring, especially its long Nordschleife, was not very suitable. The Schottenring was used only in 1953 and partly boycotted due to lack of safety. With the Solitudering near Stuttgart and the Hockenheimring (in odd-numbered years), two tracks in the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg shared the German GP until the mid-1960s, when the Solitude was abandoned and replaced by the Nürburgring.

In that time, an additional East German "Grand Prix of the GDR", held on the Sachsenring, was part of the WC from 1961 to 1972. During that period the German GP was also referred to as West German GP.

After West German Dieter Braun won the East German race on the Sachsenring in 1971, the crowd sung the (West) German anthem, the Deutschlandlied. To prevent further "demonstrations", the East German politicians limited entry of riders from Western states from 1972 onwards, and which resulted in mainly riders from Eastern bloc socialist states taking part. As a result, the event lost its World Championship status, even though it was still called "Großer Preis der DDR" until 1977, when it was renamed to "Großer Preis des ADMV der DDR" after the motorsports governing body.

In 1974, the event on the improved Nürburgring Nordschleife was boycotted by championship contenders as the track had not been fitted with straw bales, to accommodate Eifelrennen automobile racing on the same day. Thus, German riders took all wins. A few years later, in 1980, the last German GP was held on the Nordschleife, with the new GP track taking over in 1984.

The additional 1986 Baden-Württemberg Grand Prix (at Hockenheim) counted towards the WC only for 80cc and 125cc classes.

In 1998, after having become rather unpopular first at Hockenheim and then at Nürburgring due to the style of the promoters, the German motorcycle Grand Prix moved to new promoters, and to the shortened purposed-build Sachsenring where it became a sell-out event since.

Track gallery

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Winners of the motorcycle Grand Prix of Germany

"A pink background indicates an event that was not part of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing championship."

Winners of the motorcycle Grand Prix of the GDR

"A pink background indicates an event that was not part of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing championship."