Spanish Grand Prix

SPANISH GRAND PRIX

HEINZ-J. SCHNEIDER

IT WAS A suri-burnt Grand Prix for Spanish aficionados on the 2.34 miles of twisting streets through Montjuich Park, Barcelona, in the first European round of this year's world championship. There were classes for three small solo displacements and sidecars. Fifteen curves kept lap averages down to 65 to 70 mph and made riders "creep round the corners on their rear sprockets."

Suzukis gave their square fours a first outing in a European Grand Prix, but the three bikes, ridden by Perris, Anderson and Schneider were not running properly in practice or on race day.

50cc RACE

The flag set sixteen riders free to cover fourteen laps, and Japan's Isao Morishita (Suzuki) shot into the lead ahead of Hans Georg Anscheidt and Frenchman Jacques Rocca on a Spanish works Derbi. The private entries quickly dropped out, leaving the race to the factory riders.

Mitsuo Itoh passed Morishita, and in the fifth lap Anscheidt did fastest lap of the race with 65.6 mph, bettering his last year's record, which put him back into fighting position, where he settled down, waiting.

At the half-way poi$ the Honda team, all three of them, came down the slight slope to the pits. The mechanics cast symbolic looks at a plug or two, and then put the bikes away. That made it a 50% retirement rate at half-distance, and put Taveri, running last, into eighth position.

Hugh Anderson and Itoh had a private fight for third, passing and repassing each other for two laps, a fine sign showing the team's fairness to each rider, but no proof of the manager's ability to see his men through to secure success. Six laps from the end Hugh got the better over Mitsuo, and that settled the affair safely.

With four laps to go, Anscheidt started his expected attack on Busquets, the two swapping positions repeatedly for two more tours. For reasons of tactics this attack was dangerously early, but Hans-Georg was lucky a blessing which has not occurred often in his career. With two laps to go the Spaniard stopped, his right rear shock broken off just above the lower mount. It took the whole pit-crew of four to console the distressed lightweight rider, wno had lost his sole chance of really scoring in a championship event, putting his knowledge of the circuit, his hotblooded, daring riding, and the crude bike's light weight against the bhp and experience of his rivals.

Hans-Georg from then on took things easy to collect eight points, ahead of the Suzuki team, the only group to remain complete over the distance. Angel Nieto on the only remaining Derbi led Taveri to sixth place, so Taveri was rewarded with one point for his steady riding in a seemingly hopeless position. 125cc RACE

Twenty-two riders lined up for the 27-lap 125cc event, and twenty-one went off as the flag fell, leaving a surprised Rex Avery on the line, the emblem on his helmet, a king-size question mark, giving full account of his feelings. Luigi Taveri, this time on a Honda four, snatched the lead, never togive it up. Jess Thomas riding a Bultaco, the first American to get a works ride in Europe in world championship history, finished just out of the money after a fine and steady race, being the first Bultaco home.

Coming out of lap six Hugh Anderson had to visit his pit, which lost him second place and put him back a whole lap. Now Taveri and Redman comfortably led the race. They could afford to be gentle with the bikes. Owing to his rivals' breakdowns and pit stops, start-sleepy Rex Avery unexpectedly lucked into third. Although lapped by Taveri and Redman, Schneider and Anderson defended Suzuki's honors coming home fourth and fifth, and sidecar star Chris Vincent earned his first point in a solo world championship race. 250cc RACE

Nineteen riders cleared the start for the 33-lap event and left Frank Perris pushing his four down the descending road until it gradually started firing, one pot after the other. Jess Thomas on an air-cooled Bultaco got away well, showing some promise for the race. But at the end of lap One he was forced to stop and eventually retired. The only private 250 entry to stay the distance was England's Peter Jordan on a Yamaha production racer. Despite the many retirements, Tarquinio Provinis' win confirmed that he still is the best man to squeeze top performance out of a fast and reliable bike, and that he is able to ride this year's Benelli four as well as a single.

SIDECAR RACE

Thirteen outfits set off for the final race, with the favorites, Deubel/Horner, the reigning champs (who badly needed a win in Spain to regain their title), pushing down the road. Very reluctantly their BMW fired, 20 seconds after the others had left. Camathias (Gilera 4) led out of the first lap, and he was never challenged during the 26 others, taking the flag with ease. Scheidegger, although badly handicapped from a practice crash (he damaged his right knee and had to drive a kneeler), was on Flori's tail, then came Georg Auerbacher and Chris Vincent. Deubel had passed two outfits, one of them being a Matchless kneeler with vertical engine, belonging to Swiss veteran Edgar Strub.

Next lap saw Scheidegger crash again, a fact which robbed him of all confidence in his new racer, which has a 10" fiont wheel with a big home-made brake on it all brake and tire and a same size wheel at the chair, both equipped with MiniMinor racing tires. A "standard" 16" one fits into the rear. All the BMW's were troubled by carburetion in the hot Spanish climate, so it was not a question of which bike was fastest, but which one had the least problems in its Dellortos.

Not being pressed, Camathias just kept his 15 second lead in an attempt at selfdiscipline. The four was running smoothly not having to give full power. At middistance Auerbacher, running second, had slowed considerably; Chris Vincent and Otto Kolle soon pulled from him. Vincent held off Kolle until his gear lever slipped five laps from the end and made him pray for the finish. That gave Deubel a lucky fourth behind Camathias, Kolle and Auerbacher, but it nevertheless is a sad blow for the preparation-conscious champion, which might easily cost him the title. Vincent and Ludwig Hahn took what was left over from the points.