Deux-temps
Bultaco, Montesa, Ossa : l’âge d’or de la moto espagnole
Marquetrialmoto espagnole Trois constructeurs barcelonais ont porté la moto espagnole au sommet du tout-terrain mondial. Montesa, fondée en 1944 par Pere Permanyer et Paco Bultó, perd son cofondateur en 1958 lorsqu’elle renonce à la course : Bultó crée alors Bultaco. Ossa, issue d’un fabricant de projecteurs de cinéma, brille en Grand Prix avec Santiago Herrero puis en trial avec Mick Andrews. Mise au point avec Sammy Miller, la Bultaco Sherpa T impose le deux-temps léger face aux lourds quatre-temps britanniques, avant la riposte de la Montesa Cota. Grèves et concurrence japonaise emportent Bultaco et Ossa, tandis que Montesa passe sous...
Luca Cadalora: the Italian class of the intermediate categories
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.
The Yamaha TZ750: the two-stroke nobody really dared to tame
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.
The Suzuki RG500 Gamma (1985): the Grand Prix bike sold in dealerships
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.
The Kawasaki H2 750 Mach IV (1972): the two-stroke that terrorised the 1970s
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.