It was probably the worst thing I had ever done up to that point in my career. [1][6] Spencer also competed in both the 250cc and 500cc Grand Prix World Championships, winning both titles in the same year. After his historic 1985 season, Spencer never won another Grand Prix race. In 1985 many of the problems found in the first year of competition were ironed out, offering rider Freddie Spencer a dominant season, taking seven victories. But I knew we were finally headed in the right direction – it was discovering that tyre magic formula that fixed it. 500cc – Freddie Spencer 250cc – Freddie Spencer 125cc – Fausto Gresini 80cc – Stefan Dörflinger (Krauser) The 1985 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 37th F.I.M. When Freddie Spencer points to a particular day as the highpoint of an extraordinary career that brought about three world championships, and a near constant rewriting of the record books of the time, you’d certainly be expectant of something special. I personally felt that doing both championships was really important, but I knew Honda would surely ask me to stop riding the 250 to focus 100 percent on the 500. “But there were other things besides the racing that were more difficult that people didn’t see. It gave me a lot of satisfaction, and this time I was very happy that the 500 race was after the 250! “It was at the German GP, in the last session on Saturday afternoon, that we made the breakthrough. Teething problems and injuries from crashes hindered Spencer's defense of his crown and he was relegated to fourth place in the championship. Before then, the enigmatic Louisianan had made a mockery of most operating at the pinnacle of the sport, amassing achievements and records at a dizzying rate during his teens and early twenties. [1] After winning the 1978 250cc U.S. National Road Racing Championship, Spencer was contracted to ride for the American Honda racing team in the AMA Superbike Championship. was in testing. He gave Honda their first-ever super bike victory when he won the Road America round of the 1980 AMA Superbike Championship. Frederick Burdette Spencer (born December 20, 1961), sometimes known by the nickname Fast Freddie, is an American former world champion motorcycle racer. Honda’s NSR500 went on to win nine more World Championships, culminating in Valentino Rossi’s win in 2001. We had two tyres to test, and I put on one and straight away it was chattering. Freddie Spencer, född 20 december 1961 i Louisiana, är en amerikansk före detta roadracingförare, även känd som Fast Freddie.. Spencer blev den yngste världsmästaren genom tiderna i 500-klassen 1983 då han körde Hondas innovativa trecylindriga NS500.Titeln bärgades i hård kamp med Kenny Roberts. [1] In 1981, he split his time between the AMA Superbike series, and the European Grand Prix circuit, helping Honda develop the exotic, oval-cylindered NR500 four-stroke Grand Prix bike. Freddie Spencer, or "Fast Freddie," as fans called him, will go down in history as one of the greatest road racers that America ever produced. [1][2], The 1983 season would be remembered as one of the most dramatic title chases in the history of Grand Prix racing; Honda's Spencer and Yamaha's Kenny Roberts fought back and forth for the points lead with each of them earning six victories. The 250 British GP was the worst planned race I had ever done – period. Blind to prejudice and discrimination, he formed dynamic connections with people and events, but only years later during his racing afterlife could Freddie come to understand the true power of the things he learned. Will Ducati remain the most successful manufacturer in Jerez? The Honda NSR500 was debutted in 1984 for the Grand Prix season, and replaced the NS500 a triple-cylinder, running a V4 two-stroke. [9], The following is a list of results achieved by Spencer. “It just felt so right, and I dropped my lap time in that one session by a second and a half. [1], Spencer gained international prominence at the 1980 U.S. versus Britain Transatlantic Trophy match races when he won two legs at Brands Hatch, defeating World Champions Kenny Roberts and Barry Sheene in the process. If Alan Carter hadn’t crashed I’d have finished fifth, but I ended up fourth because of that and won the World Championship – but didn’t feel I deserved to. [14], (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap), Freddie Spencer at the Motorcycle Hall of Fame, Daytona 200 winners at www.motorsportsetc.com, "Spencer appointed Chairman of the FIM MotoGP™ Stewards Panel", Freddie Spencer at the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, Freddie Spencer career discussion - details of the injury that affected his GP success, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Freddie_Spencer&oldid=983962690, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, "Freddie Spencer Day", declared in 1984 by, This page was last edited on 17 October 2020, at 09:25. Roberts won the last race but Spencer finished second, securing his first world title by two points.[2].