1989 Australian motorcycle Grand Prix

Australia  1989 Australian Grand Prix
Race details
Race 2 of 15 races in the
1989 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
Date 9 April 1989
Official name Swan Premium Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix[1][2][3]
Location Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit
Course
  • Permanent racing facility
  • 4.445 km (2.762 mi)
500 cc
Pole position
Rider United States Kevin Schwantz
Time 1:34.990
Fastest lap
Rider Italy Pierfrancesco Chili
Time 1:35.280
Podium
First Australia Wayne Gardner
Second United States Wayne Rainey
Third France Christian Sarron
250 cc
Pole position
Rider France Jean-Philippe Ruggia
Time 1:38.830
Fastest lap
Rider Italy Luca Cadalora
Time 1:38.490
Podium
First Spain Sito Pons
Second France Jean-Philippe Ruggia
Third Italy Luca Cadalora
125 cc
Pole position
Rider Spain Jorge Martínez
Time 1:45.530
Fastest lap
Rider Spain Jorge Martínez
Time 1:46.530
Podium
First Spain Àlex Crivillé
Second United Kingdom Robin Milton
Third United States Alan Scott

The 1989 Australian motorcycle Grand Prix was the second round of the 1989 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of 7–9 April 1989 at Phillip Island and was the first ever World Championship Motorcycle Grand Prix to take place in Australia.

500 cc race report

Green light on the 5-row grid sees Wayne Rainey, Tadahiko Taira and Kevin Schwantz head into the first turn in front of the field, with Wayne Gardner in 4th. Second lap in 2nd place, Schwantz gets on the throttle while looking behind him and highsides out of Turn Ten; as he walked away from his Suzuki, he looked like he wished he didn't know the guy who just binned it so foolishly.

Rainey pulled out a lead of more than a second, followed by Kevin Magee, Taira, Gardner, Mick Doohan and Eddie Lawson. Eventually, Gardner got past Magee at Turn Four, and Pierfrancesco Chili crashed out for the second successive race. Gardner caught Rainey and began to swap the lead, while Magee, Christian Sarron, Freddie Spencer and Lawson closed in. Sarron caught and goes to the front, with the leaders, while Magee hung on in 4th spot. Spencer fell off and did not finish.

Last lap: Gardner, Rainey, Sarron and a small gap to Magee. Rainey's early break may have cost him rubber, because he seemed desperate to find a different line that will get him to slide his way past Gardner, but nothing works, with Gardner winning the race, followed by Rainey and Sarron.

Rainey: “Gardner ran into the back of me twice, and didn’t even notice. He was one of the sloppiest guys I ever raced – he reminded me of a bulldog on a bike. When he was on a good day, he could ride that thing right out of the saddle. He was a bit like Kevin, but more out of control. Not a thinking racer: he rode by the excitement of the crowd. If nobody was there I think he wouldn’t do much.”[4]

500 cc classification

Pos. Rider Team Manufacturer Time/Retired Points
1 Australia Wayne Gardner Rothmans Honda Team Honda 48:15.940 20
2 United States Wayne Rainey Team Lucky Strike Roberts Yamaha +0.350 17
3 France Christian Sarron Sonauto Gauloises Blondes Yamaha Mobil 1 Yamaha +0.470 15
4 Australia Kevin Magee Team Lucky Strike Roberts Yamaha +1.510 13
5 United States Eddie Lawson Rothmans Kanemoto Honda Honda +10.970 11
6 Japan Tadahiko Taira Yamaha Motor Company Yamaha +12.570 10
7 United Kingdom Ron Haslam Suzuki Pepsi Cola Suzuki +32.460 9
8 Australia Mick Doohan Rothmans Honda Team Honda +47.660 8
9 Australia Michael Dowson Yamaha +1:27.820 7
10 France Dominique Sarron Team ROC Elf Honda Honda +1 Lap 6
11 Italy Alessandro Valesi Team Iberia Yamaha +1 Lap 5
12 United Kingdom Simon Buckmaster Racing Team Katayama Honda +1 Lap 4
13 Switzerland Marco Gentile Fior Marlboro Fior +1 Lap 3
14 Switzerland Nicholas Schmassman FMS Honda +3 Laps 2
15 Germany Michael Rudroff HRK Motors Honda +3 Laps 1
Ret Australia Greg Drew PRP Retirement
Ret United States Freddie Spencer Marlboro Yamaha Team Agostini Yamaha Retirement
Ret United States Randy Mamola Cagiva Corse Cagiva Retirement
Ret Australia Malcolm Campbell Honda Retirement
Ret United States Kevin Schwantz Suzuki Pepsi Cola Suzuki Retirement
Ret United States Bubba Shobert Cabin Racing Team Honda Retirement
Ret Spain Francisco Gonzales Club Motocross Pozuelo Honda Retirement
Ret United Kingdom Niall Mackenzie Marlboro Yamaha Team Agostini Yamaha Retirement
Ret Australia James Judd Yamaha Retirement
Ret Italy Pierfrancesco Chili HB Honda Gallina Team Honda Retirement
DNS Australia Craig Harwood Yamaha Did not start
Sources: [5][6]

References

  1. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 25 July 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  2. ↑ Mitchell, Malcolm. "1989 500cc Class (FIM Grand Prix World Championship) Programmes - The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project". www.progcovers.com.
  3. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 21 May 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
  4. ↑ Scott, Michael: "Wayne Rainey", page 136. Haynes Publishing, 1997.
  5. ↑ "1989 Australian MotoGP - Motor Sport Magazine Database". 13 June 2017.
  6. ↑ "motogp.com · AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX · 500cc Race Classification 1989". www.motogp.com.
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1989 Japanese Grand Prix		 FIM Grand Prix World Championship
1989 season		 Next race:
1989 United States Grand Prix
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1990 Australian Grand Prix
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