1956 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season

The 1956 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the eighth F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix season. The season consisted of six Grand Prix races in five classes: 500cc, 350cc, 250cc, 125cc and Sidecars 500cc. It began on 8 June, with Isle of Man TT and ended with Nations Grand Prix in Italy on 9 September.

Reigning 500cc champion Geoff Duke had to serve a six months ban at the start of the season for supporting a strike by privateer riders over starting money at the 1955 Dutch TT.[1][2]

1956 Grand Prix season calendar

Round Date Grand Prix Circuit 125cc winner 250cc winner 350cc winner 500cc winner Sidecars 500cc winner Report
1 8 June Isle of Man TT Snaefell Mountain Carlo Ubbiali Carlo Ubbiali Ken Kavanagh John Surtees Hillebrand / Grunwald Report
2 30 June Dutch TT TT Circuit Assen Carlo Ubbiali Carlo Ubbiali Bill Lomas John Surtees Hillebrand / Grunwald Report
3 8 July Belgian Grand Prix Spa-Francorchamps Carlo Ubbiali Carlo Ubbiali John Surtees John Surtees Noll / Cron Report
4 22 July German Grand Prix Solitude Romolo Ferri Carlo Ubbiali Bill Lomas Reg Armstrong Noll / Cron Report
5 11 August Ulster Grand Prix Dundrod Circuit Carlo Ubbiali Luigi Taveri Bill Lomas John Hartle Noll / Cron Report
6 9 September Nations Grand Prix Monza Carlo Ubbiali Carlo Ubbiali Libero Liberati Geoff Duke Milani / Milani Report

Standings

Scoring system

Points were awarded to the top six finishers in each race. Only the four best races were counted in all five classes: the Sidecars, 125cc, 250cc, 350cc and 500cc championships.

Position  1st   2nd   3rd   4th   5th   6th 
Points 8 6 4 3 2 1

500cc final standings

Pos Rider Machine MAN
 HOL
 BEL
 GER
 ULS
 NAC
 Pts
1 John Surtees MV Agusta 1 1 1 24
2 Walter Zeller BMW 4 2 2 Ret Ret 6 16
3 John Hartle Norton 2 1 14
4 Pierre Monneret Gilera 3 3 3 12
5 Reg Armstrong Gilera Ret 1 Ret 4 11
6 Umberto Masetti MV Agusta DNS Ret 4 2 Ret 9
7 Geoff Duke Gilera Ret Ret Ret 1 8
8 Bob Brown Matchless Ret 2 6
9 Libero Liberati Gilera 2 6
10 Eddie Grant Norton 37 3 11 5 6
11 Jack Brett Norton 3 6 5
12 Peter Murphy Matchless Ret 3 4
13 Keith Bryen Norton Ret 4 10 6 4
14 Gerold Klinger BMW 4 9 3
15 Geoffrey Tanner Norton Ret 4 3
16 Alfredo Milani Gilera 5 8 2
17 Bill Lomas Moto Guzzi 5 Ret Ret Ret Ret 2
18 Paul Fahey Matchless Ret 5 Ret Ret 2
19 Carlo Bandirola MV Agusta 5 2
= Wilf Herron Norton 5 2
21 Ernst Hiller BMW 6 8 10 1
22 Derek Ennett Matchless 6 1
= Auguste Goffin Norton 6 1
24 Alan Trow Norton 7 9 0
25 Gerald Robarts Norton 15 7 0
26 Barry Hodgkinson Norton 22 Ret 7 Ret 0
27 Alois Huber BMW RS 7 Ret 0
28 Austin Carson Norton 7 0
= Roberto Colombo MV Agusta 7 0
30 John Storr Norton 8 Ret 12 0
31 Dave Chadwick Norton 23 8 0
32 Piet Bakker Norton 8 0
= Gavin Dunlop Matchless 8 0
34 Jackie Wood Velocette / Norton 24 Ret 9 Ret 0
35 Bob Matthews Norton 9 Ret 0
36 Priem Rozenberg BMW 9 0
= George Salt Norton 9 0
38 Dennis Chapman Norton 10 11 0
39 Frederick Cook Matchless 18 10 13 17 0
40 Angus Martin Matchless Ret 10 0
41 Jacques Collot Norton Manx 10 Ret 0
42 Ernst Riedelbauch BMW Ret 11 11 0
43 Ralph Rensen Norton 11 13 0
44 Casper Swart Norton 11 0
45 John Grace Norton Ret Ret 12 0
= Hans-Günther Jäger Norton Ret Ret 12 0
47 Stephen Murray Norton 12 0
= Mike O'Rourke Norton 12 0
49 Giuseppe Cantoni MV Agusta 13 0
= George Costain Norton 13 0
= Peter Knees BMW 13 0
52 Frank Perris Matchless 14 Ret 0
53 Michael Roche Norton DNS 14 0
= Hans-Joachim Scheel Norton 14 0
= Harry Turner Norton 14 0
56 Ulf Gate Norton 15 0
= Pierre Nicholas Norton 15 0
= Des Sloan Norton 15 0
59 Frank Fox Norton 16 0
= Bill Roberton Matchless 16 0
= Berthold Sieler Norton 16 0
62 Martin Brosnan BSA 17 0
= Harry Plews Norton 17 0
64 Harry Lowe BSA 41 18 0
= Karl-Heinz Scheifel Norton 18 0
66 Phil Carter Norton 19 0
= Stanley Williamson Norton 19 0
68 Denis Christian Matchless 20 0
69 Ken Tostevin Matchless 21 Ret 0
70 Ken Tully Norton 25 0
71 Bob Ferguson Matchless 26 0
72 Louis Carr Matchless 27 0
73 Brian Duffy Norton 28 Ret 0
74 Albert Moule Norton 29 0
75 Dick Thomson Matchless 30 Ret 0
76 Llewelyn Ranson Norton 31 0
77 Vic Preston Norton 32 0
78 Bill Beevers Norton 33 0
79 Ken Willis Norton 34 0
80 James Edwards Norton 35 0
81 George Begg AJS 36 Ret 0
82 Joe Glazebrook Norton 38 0
83 E. Barona Norton 39 0
84 Walter Hancock BSA 40 0
85 Stan Cameron AJS 42 0
86 Ralph Wijesinghe BSA 43 0
87 Roly Capner BSA 44 0
88 John Denton Norton 45 0
- Keith Campbell Norton / Moto Guzzi Ret Ret Ret 0
- Günther Borgesdiek Norton Ret Ret 0
- Robert Coleman Norton Ret Ret 0
- Francisco González Norton Ret Ret 0
- Ken Kavanagh Moto Guzzi DNS Ret Ret DNS 0
- Olle Nygren Matchless Ret Ret 0
- Leen Reehorst Jawa Ret Ret 0
- Martinus van Son Matchless Ret Ret 0
- Sven Andersson Norton Ret 0
- Jean-Pierre Bayle Norton Ret 0
- Raymond Bogaerdt Norton Ret 0
- Buno Böhrer Horex Ret 0
- Paolo Campanelli Gilera Ret 0
- George Catlin Norton Ret 0
- Artemio Cirelli Gilera Ret 0
- John Clark Matchless Ret 0
- Robert Cook BSA Ret 0
- Ronald Cousins Norton Ret 0
- Dickie Dale Moto Guzzi Ret 0
- Firmin Dawue Norton Ret 0
- Gerardo Düring Matchless Ret 0
- Anton Elbersen Matchless Ret 0
- Karl-Heinz Ewig Norton Ret 0
- Ray Fay BSA Ret 0
- Robin Fitton Norton Ret 0
- Brian Freestone Norton Ret 0
- Enrico Galante Norton Ret 0
- Martino Giani Gilera Ret 0
- Francesco Guglielminetti Norton Ret 0
- William Hall Norton Ret 0
- Gustav Havel Jawa Ret 0
- Frantisek Helikar Jawa Ret 0
- Eric Hinton Norton DNS Ret 0
- Jaap Iesberts Matchless Ret 0
- Roy Ingram BSA Ret 0
- Arnold Jones Matchless Ret 0
- Kees Koster Norton Ret 0
- George Leigh Norton Ret 0
= Ivor Lloyd Norton Ret 0
= Giuseppe Mantelli Gilera Ret 0
- Robert McCracken Norton Ret 0
- Bob McIntyre Norton Ret 0
- Jules Nies Norton Ret 0
- Frank Norris Norton Ret 0
- Ernie Oliver Norton Ret 0
- Sergio Pinza Moto Guzzi Ret 0
- Maurice Pizzey Norton Ret 0
- Derek Powell Matchless Ret 0
- Charlie Salt BSA Ret 0
- Brian Setchell AJS Ret 0
- Terry Shepherd Norton Ret 0
- Lodewijk Simons Norton Ret 0
- František Šťastný Jawa Ret 0
- Ken Swallow Matchless Ret 0
- Gerrit Ten Kate Norton Ret 0
- Gerry Turner Pike-BSA Ret 0
- Drikus Veer Jawa Ret 0
- John Waring Norton Ret 0
- Arthur Wheeler Moto Guzzi Ret 0
- Jack Wilks BSA Ret 0
- Trevor Williams Norton Ret 0
- Len Aislabie Norton DNS 0
- Rod Coleman Norton DNS 0
- Robert King Norton DNS 0
- Derek Minter BSA DNS 0
- E. Muñoz Norton DNS 0
- M. Muñoz Norton DNS 0
- George Northwood BSA DNS 0
- Tony Ovens Norton DNS 0
- H. Wieland Norton DNS 0
- J. Woods Norton DNS 0
Pos Rider Bike MAN
 HOL
 BEL
 GER
 ULS
 NAC
 Pts
Colour Result
Gold Winner
Silver Second place
Bronze Third place
Green Points classification
Blue Non-points classification
Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple Retired, not classified (Ret)
Red Did not qualify (DNQ)
Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
Black Disqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Withdrew (WD)
Race cancelled (C)
Blank Did not practice (DNP)
Did not arrive (DNA)
Excluded (EX)

Bold – Pole
Italics – Fastest Lap

350cc Standings

Place Rider Number Country Machine Points Wins
1 Bill Lomas United Kingdom Moto Guzzi 24 3
2 Dickie Dale United Kingdom Moto Guzzi 17 0
= August Hobl Germany DKW 17 0
4 John Surtees United Kingdom MV Agusta 14 1
5 Cecil Sandford United Kingdom DKW 13 0
6 Ken Kavanagh Australia Moto Guzzi 10 1
7 Libero Liberati Italy Gilera 8 1
8 John Hartle United Kingdom Norton 8 0
9 Derek Ennett United Kingdom AJS 6 0
10 Karl Hofmann Germany DKW 6 0
11 Roberto Colombo Italy MV Agusta 4 0
12 Jack Brett United Kingdom Norton 3 0
13 Hans Bartl Netherlands DKW 3 0
14 Umberto Masetti Italy MV Agusta 2 0
= Peter Murphy New Zealand AJS 2 0
= Eddie Grant South Africa Norton 2 0
17 Bob Brown Australia AJS 1 0
= Bob Matthews United Kingdom Norton 1 0
= Alan Trow United Kingdom Norton 1 0

250cc Standings

Place Rider Number Country Machine Points Wins
1 Carlo Ubbiali Italy MV Agusta 32 5
2 Luigi Taveri Switzerland MV Agusta 26 1
3 Enrico Lorenzetti Italy Moto Guzzi 10 0
4 Roberto Colombo Italy MV Agusta 9 0
= Horst Kassner Germany NSU 9 0
6 Remo Venturi Italy MV Agusta 8 0
7 Sammy Miller United Kingdom NSU 7 0
8 Hans Baltisberger Germany NSU 7 0
9 Arthur Wheeler United Kingdom Moto Guzzi 5 0
10 Bob Coleman New Zealand NSU 3 0
= Kees Koster Netherlands NSU 3 0
12 František Bartoš Czechoslovakia ČZ 2 0
= Bill Maddrick United Kingdom Moto Guzzi 2 0
= Lo Simons Netherlands NSU 2 0
= Alano Montanari Italy Moto Guzzi 2 0
= Bob Brown Australia NSU 2 0
17 Jean-Pierre Bayle France NSU 1 0
= Maurice Büla Switzerland NSU 1 0
= Roland Heck Germany NSU 1 0
= Jiří Koštíř Czechoslovakia ČZ 1 0

125cc

Riders' standings

Pos. Rider Bike MAN
 NED
 BEL
 GER
 ULS
 NAT
 Pts
1 Carlo Ubbiali MV Agusta 1F 1F 1 2 1F 1 32 (46)
2 Romolo Ferri Gilera NCF 1 2 14
3 Luigi Taveri MV Agusta 2 4 4 12
4 Tarquinio Provini Mondial 3 2F 10
5 Fortunato Libanori MV Agusta 2 4 9
6 Marcelo Cama Montesa 2 6
7 August Hobl DKW 3 5 6
8 Karl Hofmann DKW 5 5 6 5
9 Francisco Gonzalez Montesa 3 4
9 Pierre Monneret Gilera 3 4
9 Bill Webster MV Agusta 3 4
9 Renato Sartori Mondial 3 4
13 Cecil Sandford Mondial 4 6 4
14 Enrico Sirera Montesa 4 3
14 Bill Maddrick MV Agusta 4 3
16 Dave Chadwick LEF 5 2
16 Frank Cope MV Agusta 5 2
16 Sandro Artusi Ducati 5 2
19 Vaclav Parus ČZ 6 1
19 František Bartoš ČZ 6 1
19 Johnny Grace Montesa 6 1
Pos. Rider Bike ESP
 FRA
 MAN
 GER
 NED
 NAT
 Pts
Race key
Colour Result
Gold Winner
Silver 2nd place
Bronze 3rd place
Green Points finish
Blue Non-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple Retired (Ret)
Red Did not qualify (DNQ)
Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
Black Disqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Withdrew (WD)
Race cancelled (C)
Blank Did not practice (DNP)
Did not arrive (DNA)
Excluded (EX)
Annotation Meaning
P Pole position
F Fastest lap
Rider key
Colour Meaning
Light blue Rookie rider

Constructors' standings

Each constructor is awarded the same number of points as their best placed rider in each race.

Pos. Constructor MAN
 NED
 BEL
 GER
 ULS
 NAT
 Pts
1 MV Agusta 1 1 1 2 1 1 32 (46)
2 Gilera 3 1 2 18
3 Mondial 4 3 2 13
4 DKW 3 5 5 6 9
5 Montesa 2 6 7
6 LEF 5 2
6 Ducati 5 2
8 ČZ 6 6 2
Pos. Constructor MAN
 NED
 BEL
 GER
 ULS
 NAT
 Pts

Sources

  1. ^ "GEOFF DUKE: FIRST GENTLEMAN OF RACING". Australian Motorcycle News. Retrieved 2023-11-07.
  2. ^ "Geoff Duke would have been 100 years old today". www.speedweek.com. Retrieved 2023-11-07.

References

  • Haefliger, Werner. "Lightweight class". FIM MotoGP Results 1949–2023 Guide (2024 ed.). pp. 25–27. ISBN 978-2-9701086-8-9.
  • Büla, Maurice & Schertenleib, Jean-Claude (2001). Continental Circus 1949-2000. Chronosports S.A. ISBN 2-940125-32-5
  • "The Official MotoGP website". Retrieved 2010-07-06.
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