Report From Italy

REPORT FROM ITALY

DEPARTMENTS

CARLO PERELLI

AGO'S GREAT, PASO'S SUPREME

Being a works rider is hell and paradise together, especially with MV. Take Ago, for example. After 10 world crowns, this year he didn’t start winning the “classic events” as usual. Saarinen, on the new water-cooled 350 Yamaha, had, in fact, beaten him (and his threecylinder mount) in West Germany and France. Ago had hit back in Austria, taking the new MV Four to victory for the first time. But in Italy (and in the MV clan) suspicions were thrown about that he had won on the fast Austrain course because his mount was much faster than the Yamaha, which is not true.

So for the Italian GP which is held on the winding Imola course, MV called five times world champion Phil Read to side with the Italian star in the 350 class. After a frightful crash in practice, caused by overbraking, Phil went well in the race astride the three-cylinder model. He equaled Ago’s 1970 lap record, but couldn’t finish higher than 4th, behind winner Agostini (leading from start to finish at a record speed on the four-cylinder model). Pasolini (on a very fast Aermacchi), and Saarinen (on the water-cooled Yamaha), were 2nd and 3rd respectively. But if Ago was great, Paso was supreme. On the renovated two-stroke Twin from Aermacchi (but with aircooling and piston controlled ports), he got a brilliant 2nd place in the 350 in

spite of a slow start which relegated him to 10th place on the first lap.

In the 250 he squarely trounched, at record speeds, all the formidable Yamaha opposition, in spite of a dramatic crash in the 16th of 23 laps while leading Gould and Saarinen by 16 sec. This crash was partly caused by a “complicated” lapping of a slower rider, but Paso remounted in a dash and in a couple of laps he was leading again, to win, with the crowd delirious.

There was some drama also in the three other races of the day. In the 50, Nieto and De Vries scrapped all the way. Coming out from the last bend with a slight lead, the Dutch Kreidler rider had gearbox troubles and missed two shifts. Nieto, advancing in full flight with his Derbi, bumped into him and both machines swiveled dangerously on the track. In the final sprint, De Vries had the edge over Nieto and won at record speeds; but the other Dutch rider, Jan Huberts, who had watched the thrilling scene while being lapped, started a boxing match with Nieto (Continued on page 102)

Continued from page 101

immediately after the finish and the fight lasted until race officials divided the riders!

In the 125, Nieto was again in the leading role, this time in the company of Parlotti on the Morbidelli. Their duel lasted until three laps from the end, when the Italian rider, after setting a new lap record, crashed while overbraking for a bend. So this time Nieto won easily, at record speed on his Derbi Twin while Mortimer on the Yamaha slipped by to take 2nd place in front of Parlotti.

The 500 was the usual Ago affair, with Pagani close to him, in 2nd place. Both rode the three-cylinder MVs, but not at record speeds like in all the other classes. Here again a dramatic note: Findlay on the Jada was 3rd until the very last lap, in front of Smart’s and Spaggiari’s works Ducatis, when the electronic ignition on his Suzuki failed putting him on foot! In the closing stages, Spaggiari overtook teammate Smart, who had to stop at the pits to adjust the hydraulic steering damper.

A multiple pile-up soon after the start put out of action, among other, Stasa on the new CZ four-cylinder double ohc. Barry Sheene also entered the unlucky list for a tumble in Saturday’s 250 training which cost him a broken collarbone.

In spite of excellent weather and the promise of keen racing, attendance was inferior to the previous month’s Daytona style “200 Miles”—a sign of the changing times?

RESULTS:

50: 1. De Vries (Kreidler). 2. Nieto (Derbi). 3. Kunz (Kreidler). 4. Buscherini (Malanca). 5. Huberts (Kreidler). 6. leva (Malanca). 7. Hummel (Kreidler). 8. Giuliano (Tomos).

125: 1. Nieto (Derbi). 2. Mortimer (Yamaha). 3. Parlotti (Morbidelli). 4. Jansson (Maico). 5. Lazzarini (Maico). 6. Lenk (MZ). 7. Cocchi (Yamaha). 8. Koeler (MZ). 9. Rinaudo (Binassi).

25 0: 1. Pasolini (Aermacchi) 2.

Gould (Yamaha). 3. Saarinen (id.). 4. Lansivuori (id.). 5. Grassetti (MZ). 6. Dodds (Yamaha). 7. Anelli (id.). 8. Giansanti (id.). 9. Sommer (id.). 10. Buffarello (id.).

350: 1. Agostini (MV). 2. Pasolini (Aermacchi). 3. Saarinen (Yamaha). 4. Read (MV). 5. Kanaya (Yamaha). 6. Gould (id.). 7. W. Villa (id.). 8. Braun (id.). 9. Sommer (id.). 10. Pfirter (id.).

500: 1. Agostini (MV). 2. Pagani (MV). 3. Spaggiari (Ducati). 4. Smart (Ducati). 5. Kneubuhler (Yamaha). 6. Huber (Kawasaki). [O]