Deux-temps

Three world titles, eight wins in 500 cm³ and a riding signature of rare purity: the career of Luca Cadalora, from the 1986 125 title on a Garelli to Valentino Rossi's garage.

Born in 1974 from two TZ350 engines bolted together, the Yamaha TZ750 crushed the Daytona 200 and Formula 750 — before a certain Kenny Roberts dared to take it onto the dirt at Indianapolis.

In 1985, Suzuki put a 498.5 cc square-four two-stroke with rotary disc valves into its dealerships: 95 hp for 156 kg dry in an aluminium frame. Portrait of a road-legal Grand Prix machine, and of its rivalry with the Yamaha RD500LC.

748 cm³, a two-stroke triple, 74 hp and a chassis from another decade: the 1972 Kawasaki H2 750 Mach IV is still the most brutal road bike of its time. We also set the record straight on the “Widowmaker” nickname and on its real factory colours.

In 1984, Yamaha put a Grand Prix machine in the hands of the general public: the RD500LC. A 499cc two-stroke V4, four exhausts, YPVS valves, and the soul of Kenny Roberts' YZR500. This is the story of a road-legal replica that became a legend.