1998 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season

The 1998 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 50th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.

Season summary

Mick Doohan and Honda continued to dominate the 500 class with the Australian taking 8 victories and Honda winning all but one race.[1] Simon Crafar winning the British Grand Prix for Yamaha's lone victory.[1] After being shocked by 500 class rookie Max Biaggi's opening round victory in the Japanese Grand Prix, Doohan went on to claim his fifth world championship in as many years, finishing off the season with four consecutive wins.[1]

A controversial finish marked the 250 title race. Aprilia teammates Tetsuya Harada and Loris Capirossi both went into the final race in Argentina with a chance to win the title, Capirossi leading Harada by 4 points.[1] With one corner to go, Harada was in second, with Capirossi third, which would have given Harada the championship on tiebreak. Entering the final turn, his bike was struck from behind by Capirossi's machine, sending both riders off the track.[1] Valentino Rossi took the win with Capirossi recovering to finish in second and claiming the title.[1] Afterwards, Aprilia would release Capirossi from his contract.[1]

Kazuto Sakata would win his second 125 title for Aprilia after a tight battle with Tomomi Manako and Marco Melandri.[1]

1998 Grand Prix season calendar

The following Grands Prix were scheduled to take place in 1998:[2]

Round Date Grand Prix Circuit
1 5 April Marlboro Grand Prix of Japan Suzuka Circuit
2 19 April Marlboro Malaysian Grand Prix Johor Circuit
3 3 May Gran Premio Marlboro de España Circuito Permanente de Jerez
4 17 May Gran Premio Q8 d'Italia Mugello Circuit
5 31 May Grand Prix de France Circuit Paul Ricard
6 14 June Gran Premio Comunidad de Madrid Circuito Permanente del Jarama
7 27 June †† Rizla Dutch TT TT Circuit Assen
8 5 July British Grand Prix Donington Park
9 19 July Polini Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland Sachsenring
10 23 August Grand Prix České republiky Brno Circuit
11 6 September Gran Premio Cirio Città di Imola Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari
12 20 September Grand Prix Marlboro de Catalunya Circuit de Catalunya
13 4 October Qantas Australian Grand Prix Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit
14 25 October Gran Premio Marlboro de Argentina Autódromo Oscar Alfredo Gálvez

†† = Saturday race

Calendar changes

1998 Grand Prix season results

Round Date Race Location 125cc winner 250cc winner 500cc winner Report
1 5 April Japanese motorcycle Grand Prix Suzuka Kazuto Sakata Daijiro Kato Max Biaggi Report
2 19 April Malaysian motorcycle Grand Prix Johor Noboru Ueda Tetsuya Harada Mick Doohan Report
3 3 May Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix Jerez Kazuto Sakata Loris Capirossi Àlex Crivillé Report
4 17 May Italian motorcycle Grand Prix Mugello Tomomi Manako Marcellino Lucchi Mick Doohan Report
5 31 May French motorcycle Grand Prix Paul Ricard Kazuto Sakata Tetsuya Harada Àlex Crivillé Report
6 14 June Madrid motorcycle Grand Prix Jarama Lucio Cecchinello Tetsuya Harada Carlos Checa Report
7 27 June †† Dutch TT Assen Marco Melandri Valentino Rossi Mick Doohan Report
8 5 July British motorcycle Grand Prix Donington Kazuto Sakata Loris Capirossi Simon Crafar Report
9 19 July German motorcycle Grand Prix Sachsenring Tomomi Manako Tetsuya Harada Mick Doohan Report
10 23 August Czech Republic motorcycle Grand Prix Brno Marco Melandri Tetsuya Harada Max Biaggi Report
11 6 September City of Imola motorcycle Grand Prix Imola Tomomi Manako Valentino Rossi Mick Doohan Report
12 20 September Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix Catalunya Tomomi Manako Valentino Rossi Mick Doohan Report
13 4 October Australian motorcycle Grand Prix Phillip Island Masao Azuma Valentino Rossi Mick Doohan Report
14 25 October Argentine motorcycle Grand Prix Buenos Aires Tomomi Manako Valentino Rossi Mick Doohan Report

†† = Saturday race

Participants

500cc participants

Team Constructor Motorcycle No. Rider Rounds
Repsol Honda Honda Honda NSR500 1 Mick Doohan All
2 Tadayuki Okada 1–4, 7, 10–14
4 Àlex Crivillé All
Honda NSR500V 15 Sete Gibernau All
Suzuki Grand Prix Team Suzuki Suzuki RGV500 (XR88) 3 Nobuatsu Aoki All
20 Luca Cadalora 7
25 Yukio Kagayama 2–5
27 Katsuaki Fujiwara 10–12
29 Keiichi Kitagawa 1
33 Mark Willis 13
/ Yamaha Team Rainey Yamaha Yamaha YZR500 (OWK1) 5 Norick Abe All
12 Jean-Michel Bayle 10–12, 14
20 Luca Cadalora 5–6
21 Kyoji Nanba 1–4, 9
Marlboro Team Kanemoto Honda Honda NSR500 6 Max Biaggi All
//
Muz Roc Rennen Sport
MuZ MuZ 500 7 Doriano Romboni 1–2
16 Jean-Philippe Ruggia 7
20 Luca Cadalora 14
77 Eskil Suter 4–6, 8–12
Movistar Honda Pons Honda Honda NSR500 8 Carlos Checa 1–8, 10–14
14 Juan Borja 8
19 John Kocinski 1–7, 10–14
39 Gregorio Lavilla 9
Honda Gresini Honda Honda NSR500 9 Alex Barros All
/ Team Roberts
Marlboro Team Roberts
Modenas KR Modenas KR3 10 Kenny Roberts Jr. All
28 Ralf Waldmann 1–7, 9–14
Red Bull Yamaha WCM Yamaha Yamaha YZR500 11 Simon Crafar All
55 Régis Laconi 1, 3–14
Shell Advance Racing Honda Honda NSR500V 14 Juan Borja 1–7, 10–14
18 Garry McCoy 1–10, 13
26 Bernard Garcia 11
42 Craig Connell 12, 14
42 Craig Connell 13
53 Russel Wood 2
58 Felisberto Teixeira 3
71 Juan Pablo Gianini 14
72 Fernando Cristóbal 6
72 Fernando Cristóbal 8–9
Dee Cee Jeans Racing Team Honda Honda NSR500V 17 Jurgen van den Goorbergh All
Tecmas Honda Elf Honda Honda NSR500V 22 Sébastien Gimbert 1–6, 10–14
26 Bernard Garcia 7–9
F.C.C. TSR Honda Honda NSR500V 23 Matt Wait All
Team Paton Paton Paton V70 C10/4 43 Paolo Tessari 11–12
63 Gianmaria Liverani 4
Yamaha Racing Team Yamaha Yamaha YZR500 50 Noriyuki Haga 1
BP Yamaha Racing Team Yamaha Yamaha YZR500 52 Norihiko Fujiwara 2
Team Polini Inoxmacel Honda Honda NSR500V 57 Fabio Carpani All
Team Zupin Honda Honda NSR500V 60 Jörg Schöllhorn 9
Team Vimto Honda/Paul Bird Honda Honda NSR500V 68 John McGuinness 8
Team Millar Honda Britain Honda Honda NSR500V 88 Scott Smart 1, 3–14
Key
Regular Rider
Wildcard Rider
Replacement Rider

250cc participants

Team Constructor Motorcycle No Rider Rounds
Castrol 250 Team Honda Honda NSR250 4 Stefano Perugini All
Benetton Honda Honda Honda NSR250 5 Tohru Ukawa All
F.C.C. TSR Honda Honda NSR250 6 Haruchika Aoki All
Team Semprucci Biesse Group Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 7 Takeshi Tsujimura All
Antena 3 Yamaha Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 8 Luis D'Antin All
17 José Luis Cardoso All
92 David García 12
QUB Team Optimum TSR–Honda Honda NSR250 9 Jeremy McWilliams All
Docshop Racing Aprilia Aprilia RSV 250 11 Jürgen Fuchs 1–9
15 Martin Craggill 13
34 Marcellino Lucchi 10–11
45 Diego Giugovaz 12, 14
85 Mathias Neukirchen 9
Team Rizla Suzuki Suzuki Suzuki RGV250 12 Noriyasu Numata All
16 Johan Stigefelt All
OXS Matteoni Racing ERP Honda Honda NSR250 14 Davide Bulega 5–14
Honda 1–4
49 Filippo Cotti 11
Edo Racing Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 18 Osamu Miyazaki 1–5, 7, 10–14
21 Franco Battaini 1–6, 10–14
33 Jamie Robinson 8–9
47 Ivan Clementi 6–9
Chesterfield Elf Tech 3 Honda Honda NSR250 19 Olivier Jacque 1–7, 10–14
20 William Costes 1–9
22 Matthieu Lagrive 10–14
68 Julien Allemand 8–9
Padgetts HRC Shop TSR–Honda Honda NSR250 24 Jason Vincent 1–13
Honda 82 Woolsey Coulter 8
82 Woolsey Coulter 14
Penguin Racing ERP–Honda Honda NSR250 25 Yasumasa Hatakeyama 4–9
Honda 1–3, 10–14
PR2 Mitsubishi Elaion Aprilia Aprilia RSV 250 27 Sebastián Porto All
40 Gary May 8
41 Federico Gartner 1–7, 9–14
Aprilia Grand Prix Racing Team Aprilia Aprilia RSV 250 31 Tetsuya Harada All
34 Marcellino Lucchi 3–4, 12
65 Loris Capirossi All
Scuderia AGV Carrizosa TSR–Honda Honda NSR250 37 Luca Boscoscuro All
44 Roberto Rolfo All
Strugnell Racing Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 42 William Strugnell 13
Team Taylor Racing Honda Honda NSR250 43 David Horton 13
Team Italia Aprilia Aprilia RSV 250 45 Diego Giugovaz 11
Nastro Azzurro Aprilia Aprilia Aprilia RSV 250 46 Valentino Rossi All
Team RCGM Aprilia Aprilia RSV 250 48 Igor Antonelli 11
BP Yamaha Racing Team Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 50 Shinya Nakano 1, 13
Y.E.S.S. Racing Team Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 51 Naoki Matsudo 1
Team Suzuki All Japan Suzuki Suzuki RGV250 52 Choujun Kameya 1
55 Yukio Kagayama 1
Team Kotake Honda Honda NSR250 53 Makoto Tamada 1
Castrol Honda Honda Honda NSR250 54 Daijiro Kato 1
Petronas Sprinta Team TVK Honda Honda NSR250 56 Shahrol Yuzy 2
SBK Sport Honda Honda NSR250 58 Eustaquio Gavira 3, 12
59 Ismael Bonilla 3, 6
60 Agustín Escobar 3
Equipo Competition M-3 Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 61 Manuel Luque 3
Brunskill Racing Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 62 Adam Brunskill 13
Allect Racing Honda Honda NSR250 63 Craig Frederickson 13
Rgv Spares Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 64 Shaun Geronimi 13
Racing Factory Honda Honda NSR250 66 Alex Hofmann 9
Equipe de France Honda Honda NSR250 67 Matthieu Lagrive 5
68 Julien Allemand 5
69 Vincent Philippe 5
F.P. Racing Honda Honda NSR250 70 Franck Poulle 5
Aprilia France Aprilia Aprilia RSV 250 71 Hervé Mora 5
Team Sotano Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 72 José David de Gea 6
Hernandez Team Honda Honda NSR250 73 Alex Debón 6
Team Chupa Chups Honda Honda NSR250 74 Lucas Oliver Bultó 12
93 Iván Silva 12
MRTT Team Bolwerk Honda Honda NSR250 75 Maurice Bolwerk 7
Dee Cee Jeans Racing Team Honda Honda NSR250 76 Jarno Janssen 7
Racing Team Twello Honda Honda NSR250 77 André Romein 7
Johan Jong Brandbom Team Honda Honda NSR250 78 Rudie Markink 7
Schoenkaper O.Z. Honda Honda NSR250 79 Henk van der Lagemaat 7
Aprilia UK / Blacks Bikeshop Aprilia Aprilia RSV 250 80 Paul Jones 8
Honda Britain / QUB Team Optimum Honda Honda NSR250 81 Callum Ramsay 8
Team Colin Appleyard Racing Honda Honda NSR250 83 Shane Norval 8
Team Klingels Honda Honda NSR250 84 Mike Baldinger 9
RS Rallye Sport Gmbh Honda Honda NSR250 86 Markus Ober 9
Imt Racing Team Honda Honda NSR250 87 Adrian Schmidt 9
Slovnaft Sport Moto Team ERP–Honda Honda NSR250 88 Vladimír Častka 10
Klub Racing Team Znojmo Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 89 Radomil Rous 10
Moto Racing Club Ostrava Honda Honda NSR250 90 Lukáš Vavrečka 10
Muller Maler Racing Team Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 91 Lars Langer 10
Costa Azamar Honda Honda NSR250 94 David Ortega 12
Mitsubishi Mondial Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 95 Matías Ríos 14
Pablo Lessio Competicion Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 96 Leandro Mulet 14
Honda Castrol Gregorio Honda Honda NSR250 97 Diego Ruabén 14
Recouso Oscar Yamaha Yamaha YZR 250 98 Gabriel Borgmann 14
Key
Regular Rider
Wildcard Rider
Replacement Rider

125cc participants

Team Constructor Motorcycle No Rider Rounds
Givi Honda LCR Honda Honda RS125R 2 Noboru Ueda 1–5, 12–14
10 Lucio Cecchinello All
52 Hiroyuki Kikuchi 6–10
Team UGT 3000 Honda Honda RS125R 3 Tomomi Manako All
39 Jaroslav Huleš All
UGT 3000 Aprilia Aprilia RS125R 4 Kazuto Sakata All
Honda Honda RS125R 9 Frédéric Petit All
85 Klaus Nöhles 9
Docshop Racing Aprilia Aprilia RS125R 5 Masaki Tokudome All
Via Digital Team Aprilia Aprilia RS125R 7 Emilio Alzamora All
29 Ángel Nieto Jr. All
60 Fonsi Nieto 3, 6, 12
79 Pablo Nieto 12
Team Polini Inoxmacel Honda Honda RS125R 8 Gianluigi Scalvini All
15 Roberto Locatelli All
49 Andrea Zappa 11
70 Adrián Araujo 12
Team Valencia Aspar Aprilia Aprilia RS125R 11 Jose Ramon Ramirez 1–3
59 Jerónimo Vidal 3
59 Jerónimo Vidal 4–11, 13–14
73 Iván Martínez 6
73 Iván Martínez 12
Benetton Matteoni
OXS Matteoni
Honda Honda RS125R 13 Marco Melandri All
32 Mirko Giansanti All
55 Manuel Poggiali 11
Scuderia Alfa Nolan Aprilia Aprilia RS125R 14 Federico Cerroni 6–12, 14
18 Paolo Tessari 1–5
24 Alessandro Romagnoli 13
Team Semprucci Biesse Group Yamaha Yamaha TZ125 16 Christian Manna 1–11, 14
19 Andrea Ballerini 12–13
62 Yoshiaki Katoh All
Team Yamaha Kurz Aral Yamaha Yamaha TZ125 17 Juan Enrique Maturana All
41 Youichi Ui All
Team Pileri Honda Honda RS125R 19 Andrea Ballerini 1–3
65 Andrea Iommi 4–14
Mac Motors Liegeois Competicion Honda Honda RS125R 20 Masao Azuma All
SCRAB Compétition Aprilia Aprilia RS125R 21 Arnaud Vincent All
Marlboro Team ADAC Aprilia Aprilia RS125R 22 Steve Jenkner All
Motoracing Team Aprilia Aprilia RS125R 23 Gino Borsoi All
Vasco Rossi Racing Aprilia Aprilia RS125R 26 Ivan Goi All
Fairbarin Cranes–Black Mamba Honda Honda RS125R 42 Chedryian Bresland 13
Teknic Motorcycle Clothing Honda Honda RS125R 43 Peter Galvin 13
Southern Cross Sports Honda Honda RS125R 44 Judd Greedy 13
Team Taylor Racing Honda Honda RS125R 45 Jay Taylor 13
Christopher West Plumbing Honda Honda RS125R 46 Anthony West 13
Team Italia Aprilia Aprilia RS125R 47 Riccardo Chiarello 11
Team RS Honda Honda RS125R 48 Max Sabbatani 11
M'Project Honda Honda RS125R 50 Yuzo Fujioka 1
J. Racing Yamaha Yamaha TZ125 51 Takashi Akita 1
Tube Riders & Ablecom Honda Honda RS125R 52 Hiroyuki Kikuchi 1
S.P. Tadao Racing Team Yamaha Yamaha TZ125 53 Nobuyuki Osaki 1
Castrol Team Harc Pro Honda Honda RS125R 54 Kazuhiro Takao 1
RRC Prakash RAO Honda Honda RS125R 56 Magilai Meganathan 2
Echo Team Berner Honda Honda RS125R 58 Álvaro Molina 3, 6, 12
Team Esparragoso IGM Yamaha Yamaha TZ125 61 Vicente Esparragoso 3
Ricci Corse Honda Honda RS125R 63 Marco Tresoldi 4, 11
Ciarom–MotoSprint Aprilia Aprilia RS125R 64 Claudio Cipriani 4
Honda France Honda Honda RS125R 67 Randy de Puniet 5
Ipone Dussauge Racing Honda Honda RS125R 68 Nicolas Dussauge 5
Team RMS Honda Honda RS125R 69 Jimmy Petit 5
Team TMR Honda Honda RS125R 71 Josep Sardà 6, 12
Team TJT Honda Honda RS125R 72 Sebastián Perelló 6
Ep Bos Electro Elburg EGA Honda Honda RS125R 74 Hans Koopman 7
Team Kroegman Yamaha Yamaha TZ125 75 Wim Kroegman 7
Le Coq Fight Racing Honda Honda RS125R 76 Harold de Haan 7
R.T.D. Dooderman Dakdekkers Honda Honda RS125R 77 Ronnie Timmer 7
Luvro Ramaker Toyota Racing Honda Honda RS125R 78 Wilhelm van Leeuwen 7
Honda Britain Honda Honda RS125R 80 Leon Haslam 8
L Rumney/Garstang Cleaning Honda Honda RS125R 81 Chris Palmer 8
Racing Lines/Clive Horton Honda Honda RS125R 82 John Pearson 8
Ulster Racing Honda Honda RS125R 83 David Mateer 8
Agip Esch Racing Honda Honda RS125R 84 Reinhard Stolz 9
Yamaha Loffler Racing Team Yamaha Yamaha TZ125 86 Oliver Perschke 9
Hein Gericke Castrol Jr Team Honda Honda RS125R 87 Dirk Heidolf 9
Motorrad B.U.S. Levior Racing Yamaha Yamaha TZ125 88 Maik Stief 9
Repsol Team Honda Honda RS125R 89 Igor Kaláb 10
Wernberger - Team Hanusch Honda Honda RS125R 90 Jakub Smrž 10
91 Martin Psotný 10
Delta Uamk Team Honda Honda RS125R 92 Michal Březina 10
Telemark Racing Team Honda Honda RS125R 93 Bohuslav Seifert 10
Matsuo Daido Yuasa–tam Honda Honda RS125R 94 Cristiano Vieira 14
Amauri–Revista Moto! Honda Honda RS125R 95 César Barros 14
Motosistem 1 Honda Honda RS125R 97 Silvio Cesar 14
Key
Regular Rider
Wildcard Rider
Replacement Rider

Standings

Riders' standings

500cc

[3][4]

Scoring system

Points were awarded to the top fifteen finishers. A rider had to finish the race to earn points.

Position  1st   2nd   3rd   4th   5th   6th   7th   8th   9th   10th   11th   12th   13th   14th   15th 
Points 25 20 16 13 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
  • Riders marked with light blue background were eligible for Rookie of the Year award.
Pos Rider Bike JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
Pts
1 Mick Doohan Honda Ret 1 2 1 2 Ret 1 2 1 Ret 1 1 1 1 260
2 Max Biaggi Honda 1 3 3 2 5 6 2 6 2 1 3 DSQ 8 5 208
3 Àlex Crivillé Honda 4 4 1 3 1 5 6 4 3 2 2 Ret 3 Ret 198
4 Carlos Checa Honda 8 2 4 4 3 1 5 WD 7 10 6 DNS 8 139
5 Alex Barros Honda 7 Ret 5 9 Ret 9 4 5 4 3 4 7 4 3 138
6 Norifumi Abe Yamaha 14 Ret 6 6 7 2 Ret 3 Ret 5 6 3 5 4 128
7 Simon Crafar Yamaha 9 Ret 13 7 9 8 3 1 Ret 11 11 5 2 13 119
8 Tadayuki Okada Honda 2 Ret 7 DNQ 8 4 7 2 9 2 106
9 Nobuatsu Aoki Suzuki 6 Ret 8 8 8 4 7 7 10 12 9 11 6 12 101
10 Régis Laconi Yamaha DNS 14 10 11 7 9 8 5 9 12 8 7 6 86
11 Sete Gibernau Honda 10 Ret 12 14 10 3 Ret Ret Ret 6 8 4 Ret 9 72
12 John Kocinski Honda 13 5 11 5 4 Ret DNS 15 13 9 12 10 64
13 Kenny Roberts Jr. Modenas KR3 11 11 9 Ret 13 WD 12 Ret 6 10 14 10 10 11 59
14 Ralf Waldmann Modenas KR3 Ret 9 10 11 12 10 DNS 7 13 15 12 Ret 15 46
15 Jurgen van den Goorbergh Honda Ret 8 18 16 15 Ret 10 9 8 16 Ret 13 11 14 40
16 Jean-Michel Bayle Yamaha 8 5 Ret 7 28
17 Garry McCoy Honda Ret 10 15 13 17 11 11 13 Ret DNS Ret 23
18 Kyoji Nanba Yamaha 5 Ret 16 12 9 22
19 Matt Wait Honda Ret 12 20 Ret 18 13 13 Ret 14 20 18 14 13 17 17
20 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha 3 16
21 Scott Smart Honda Ret 21 19 Ret 12 14 10 Ret 21 Ret 15 15 DNS 14
22 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki 6 19 17 DNS 10
23 Luca Cadalora Yamaha 6 Ret 10
Suzuki Ret
MuZ Ret
24 Bernard Garcia Honda 15 11 12 Ret 10
25 Norihiko Fujiwara Yamaha 7 9
26 Eskil Suter MuZ 18 Ret 14 Ret 13 14 Ret Ret 7
27 Gregorio Lavilla Honda 11 5
28 Doriano Romboni MuZ 12 DNS 4
29 John McGuinness Honda 12 4
30 Sébastien Gimbert Honda Ret 13 17 15 16 DNQ 19 Ret Ret Ret 16 4
31 Fernando Cristóbal Honda 15 14 15 4
32 Juan Borja Honda 15 Ret Ret Ret 14 Ret Ret DNS 17 17 Ret 16 18 3
33 Mark Willis Suzuki 14 2
34 Fabio Carpani Honda 16 Ret Ret 20 19 16 DNQ 15 16 Ret 19 Ret Ret 20 1
Katsuaki Fujiwara Suzuki 18 16 Ret 0
Paolo Tessari Paton Ret 16 0
Craig Connell Honda Ret Ret 19 0
Juan Pablo Gianini Honda 21 0
Felisberto Teixeira Honda 22 0
Keiichi Kitagawa Suzuki Ret 0
Russell Wood Honda Ret 0
Gianmaria Liverani Paton Ret 0
Jean-Philippe Ruggia MuZ Ret 0
Jörg Schöllhorn Honda WD 0
Pos. Rider Bike JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
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 position
Italics – Fastest lap

250cc

[5]

Scoring system

Points were awarded to the top fifteen finishers. A rider had to finish the race to earn points.

Position  1st   2nd   3rd   4th   5th   6th   7th   8th   9th   10th   11th   12th   13th   14th   15th 
Points 25 20 16 13 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
  • Riders marked with light blue background were eligible for Rookie of the Year award.
Pos Rider Bike JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
Pts
1 Loris Capirossi Aprilia 7 5 1 4 3 3 Ret 1 4 2 2 3 2 2 224
2 Valentino Rossi Aprilia Ret Ret 2 2 2 Ret 1 Ret 3 Ret 1 1 1 1 201
3 Tetsuya Harada Aprilia 4 1 DSQ 3 1 1 Ret 2 1 1 10 2 Ret Ret 200
4 Tohru Ukawa Honda Ret 2 4 7 Ret 2 5 4 Ret 5 4 5 5 4 145
5 Olivier Jacque Honda 5 3 3 Ret 4 Ret Ret Ret 5 4 3 3 112
6 Haruchika Aoki Honda 11 4 6 6 6 Ret 3 5 Ret 6 6 7 8 Ret 112
7 Stefano Perugini Honda 12 6 7 5 5 Ret Ret 3 Ret 11 3 6 6 Ret 102
8 Takeshi Tsujimura Yamaha 15 11 8 12 9 7 7 8 6 8 9 10 12 11 91
9 Jeremy McWilliams TSR-Honda 10 7 Ret Ret 7 9 12 7 2 4 Ret Ret Ret 6 87
10 Luis D'Antin Yamaha DNS Ret 9 9 8 6 4 9 12 12 11 16 7 Ret 74
11 José Luis Cardoso Yamaha 8 10 Ret 8 13 5 Ret 10 7 10 12 Ret Ret Ret 61
12 Roberto Rolfo TSR-Honda Ret 12 13 Ret 14 10 10 12 11 15 8 8 13 5 61
13 Jason Vincent TSR-Honda 19 14 Ret Ret 10 8 8 6 5 7 15 11 Ret 60
14 Luca Boscoscuro TSR-Honda 18 Ret 11 10 Ret Ret 9 DNS 8 9 7 12 10 10 58
15 Marcellino Lucchi Aprilia 5 1 3 Ret Ret 52
16 Noriyasu Numata Suzuki 9 12 14 Ret Ret Ret 11 11 9 14 14 13 9 7 52
17 Jürgen Fuchs Aprilia 17 8 Ret Ret 12 4 2 Ret DNS 45
18 Franco Battaini Yamaha Ret Ret 12 11 11 DNS 13 13 9 Ret 9 34
19 Shinya Nakano Yamaha 2 4 33
20 Daijiro Kato Honda 1 25
21 Johan Stigefelt Suzuki Ret Ret Ret DNS Ret 12 15 13 Ret 16 21 15 11 8 22
22 Sebastián Porto Aprilia Ret 9 Ret Ret Ret Ret 6 DNS Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 17
23 Naoki Matsudo Yamaha 3 16
24 Osamu Miyazaki Yamaha 14 15 10 Ret Ret DNS 18 18 14 15 14 14
25 Davide Bulega Honda 20 Ret Ret 14 11
ERP-Honda 16 14 17 DNS 13 20 16 Ret Ret 12
26 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki 6 10
27 Yasumasa Hatakeyama Honda Ret Ret 16 17 20 17 14 Ret 9
ERP-Honda 13 Ret 13 16 15 DNS
28 Ivan Clementi Yamaha 11 14 Ret Ret 7
29 Alex Hofmann Honda 10 6
30 William Costes Honda DNS Ret 15 16 Ret Ret 13 14 Ret 6
31 Choujun Kameya Suzuki 13 3
32 Diego Giugovaz Aprilia 17 18 13 3
33 Jamie Robinson Yamaha 16 14 2
34 Federico Gartner Aprilia Ret 16 18 15 Ret 16 WD Ret Ret 24 Ret 19 17 1
35 Julien Allemand Honda 15 17 WD 1
36 Ismael Bonilla Honda 17 15 1
37 Mike Baldinger Honda 15 1
38 Woolsey Coulter Honda Ret 15 1
Matthieu Lagrive Honda DNS 19 22 19 18 16 0
Makoto Tamada Honda 16 0
Shaun Geronimi Yamaha 16 0
Shahrol Yuzy Yamaha 17 0
Vincent Philippe Honda 17 0
David Horton Honda 17 0
Franck Poulle Honda 18 0
Jarno Janssen Honda 18 0
Shane Norval Honda 18 0
Diego Ruabén Honda 18 0
Maurice Bolwerk Honda 19 0
Igor Antonelli Aprilia 19 0
Leandro Mulet Yamaha 19 0
Rudie Markink Honda 20 0
David García Honda 20 0
Craig Frederickson Honda 20 0
Gabriel Borgmann Yamaha 20 0
André Romein Honda 21 0
Vladimír Častka ERP-Honda 21 0
Lucas Oliver Bultó Honda 21 0
Radomil Rous Yamaha 22 0
David Ortega Honda 22 0
Filippo Cotti Honda 23 0
Eustaquio Gavira Honda Ret Ret 0
Agustín Escobar Honda Ret 0
Hervé Mora Aprilia Ret 0
Alex Debón Honda Ret 0
Gary May Aprilia Ret 0
Paul Jones Aprilia Ret 0
Callum Ramsay Honda Ret 0
Markus Ober Honda Ret 0
Mathias Neukirchen Aprilia Ret 0
Adrian Schmidt Honda Ret 0
Iván Silva Honda Ret 0
William Strugnell Honda Ret 0
Matías Ríos Yamaha Ret 0
Martin Craggill Aprilia DNS 0
Manuel Luque Yamaha DNQ 0
José David de Gea Yamaha DNQ 0
Henk van de Lagemaat Honda DNQ 0
Lukáš Vavrečka Honda DNQ 0
Lars Langer Yamaha DNQ 0
Adam Brunskill Yamaha DNQ 0
Pos. Rider Bike JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
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 position
Italics – Fastest lap

125cc

[6]

Scoring system

Points were awarded to the top fifteen finishers. A rider had to finish the race to earn points.

Position  1st   2nd   3rd   4th   5th   6th   7th   8th   9th   10th   11th   12th   13th   14th   15th 
Points 25 20 16 13 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
  • Riders marked with light blue background were eligible for Rookie of the Year award.
Pos Rider Bike JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
Pts
1 Kazuto Sakata Aprilia 1 6 1 4 1 4 2 1 7 2 4 9 4 5 229
2 Tomomi Manako Honda 2 3 2 1 Ret Ret 3 Ret 1 Ret 1 1 2 1 217
3 Marco Melandri Honda 10 Ret 10 2 2 2 1 4 13 1 2 8 3 2 202
4 Masao Azuma Honda 3 9 4 9 3 Ret 10 Ret Ret Ret 3 3 1 4 135
5 Lucio Cecchinello Honda 4 12 Ret Ret 5 1 4 6 DNS 3 Ret 4 7 3 130
6 Mirko Giansanti Honda Ret 2 3 Ret Ret Ret 6 2 Ret 4 Ret 2 12 6 113
7 Masaki Tokudome Aprilia 8 4 12 10 8 9 5 5 9 Ret 5 13 16 8 97
8 Gianluigi Scalvini Honda 6 13 8 3 Ret 5 Ret 9 Ret 5 12 10 9 10 89
9 Roberto Locatelli Honda Ret 5 Ret Ret 4 Ret 7 Ret 3 8 7 5 6 Ret 87
10 Frédéric Petit Honda 11 7 11 8 6 8 8 8 DNS 10 11 15 14 13 78
11 Youichi Ui Yamaha Ret Ret 7 5 11 7 12 3 Ret Ret 6 Ret 5 15 76
12 Arnaud Vincent Aprilia 20 10 14 11 12 Ret 16 11 2 6 9 12 Ret 7 72
13 Noboru Ueda Honda Ret 1 5 7 Ret 6 18 9 62
14 Ivan Goi Aprilia 15 15 Ret 13 9 Ret 14 10 11 9 10 11 11 11 53
15 Hiroyuki Kikuchi Honda 7 3 13 15 4 7 DNS 52
16 Yoshiaki Katoh Yamaha 12 17 Ret 19 10 11 Ret Ret 6 15 8 7 Ret 14 45
17 Steve Jenkner Aprilia Ret 11 16 14 7 10 9 Ret 8 11 14 16 15 17 45
18 Gino Borsoi Aprilia Ret Ret 9 6 Ret 16 11 7 Ret 14 Ret 20 10 12 43
19 Ángel Nieto Jr. Aprilia 13 8 13 Ret Ret 6 17 12 10 12 Ret 18 13 Ret 41
20 Jaroslav Huleš Honda Ret 14 6 Ret Ret 12 15 Ret Ret Ret Ret 19 8 18 25
21 Emilio Alzamora Aprilia 21 16 Ret 17 Ret Ret Ret 14 5 Ret 13 14 21 DNS 18
22 Nobuyuki Osaki Yamaha 5 11
23 Juan Enrique Maturana Yamaha 16 Ret Ret 18 14 15 19 16 12 13 16 Ret 17 16 10
24 Takashi Akita Yamaha 9 7
25 Paolo Tessari Aprilia 19 18 18 12 15 5
26 Jerónimo Vidal Aprilia 19 16 13 Ret 20 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 3
27 Álvaro Molina Honda Ret 13 25 3
28 Federico Cerroni Aprilia Ret 18 13 17 Ret 18 DNS Ret 3
29 Fonsi Nieto Aprilia 15 14 17 3
30 Kazuhiro Takao Honda 14 2
31 Andrea Iommi Honda Ret 16 18 21 18 14 16 19 24 22 Ret 2
32 Claudio Cipriani Aprilia 15 1
33 Christian Manna Yamaha Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 15 17 DNS Ret 1
34 Andrea Zappa Honda 15 1
Klaus Nöhles Honda 16 0
Jose Ramon Ramirez Aprilia 17 Ret 17 0
Max Sabbatani Honda 17 0
Leon Haslam Honda 17 0
Randy de Puniet Honda 17 0
Josep Sardà Honda 17 23 0
Igor Kaláb Honda 18 0
Reinhard Stolz Honda 18 0
Jimmy Petit Honda 18 0
Andrea Ballerini Honda 18 DSQ Ret 0
Yamaha 21 19
Cristiano Viera Honda 19 0
Michal Březina Honda 19 0
Oliver Perschke Yamaha 19 0
Iván Martínez Aprilia 19 Ret 0
Silvio Cesar Honda 20 0
Jay Taylor Honda 20 0
Bohuslav Seifert Honda 20 0
Dirk Heidolf Honda 20 0
Marco Tresoldi Honda 20 Ret 0
Pablo Nieto Aprilia 22 0
Hans Koopman EGA Honda 22 0
Peter Galvin Honda 23 0
Wilhelm van Leeuwen Honda 23 0
Harold de Haan Honda 24 0
Alessandro Romagnoli Aprilia Ret 0
Anthony West Honda Ret 0
Judd Greedy Honda Ret 0
Adrián Araujo Honda Ret 0
Riccardo Chiarello Aprilia Ret 0
Jakub Smrž Honda Ret 0
Martin Psotný Honda Ret 0
Maik Stief Yamaha Ret 0
Chris Palmer Honda Ret 0
David Mateer Honda Ret 0
John Pearson Honda Ret 0
Nicolas Dussauge Honda Ret 0
Magilai Meganathan Honda Ret 0
Yuzo Fujioka Honda Ret 0
Chedryian Bresland Honda DNS 0
Manuel Poggiali Honda DNS
Sebastián Perelló Honda DNS
Vicente Esparragoso Yamaha DNS
César Barros Honda DNQ
Ronnie Timmer Honda DNQ
Wim Kroegman Yamaha DNQ
Pos. Rider Bike JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
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 position
Italics – Fastest lap

Manufacturers' standings

500cc

[7]

Pos. Manufacturer JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
Pts
1 Honda 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 345
2 Yamaha 3 7 6 6 6 2 3 1 5 5 5 3 2 4 198
3 Suzuki 6 6 8 8 8 4 7 7 10 12 9 11 6 12 111
4 Modenas KR3 11 9 9 11 12 10 12 Ret 6 10 14 10 10 11 73
5 MuZ 12 DNS 18 Ret 14 Ret Ret 13 14 Ret Ret Ret 11
Paton Ret Ret 16 0
Pos. Manufacturer JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
Pts

250cc

[8]

Pos. Manufacturer JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
Pts
1 Aprilia 4 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 338
2 Honda 1 2 3 5 4 2 3 3 10 5 3 4 3 3 215
3 Yamaha 2 10 8 8 8 5 4 8 6 8 9 9 4 9 134
4 TSR-Honda 10 7 11 10 7 8 8 6 2 4 7 8 10 5 128
5 Suzuki 6 13 14 Ret Ret 12 11 11 9 14 14 13 9 7 59
6 ERP Honda 13 16 13 16 15 13 20 16 Ret Ret 12 14
Pos. Manufacturer JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
Pts

125cc

Pos. Manufacturer JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
Pts
1 Honda 2 1 2 1 2 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 330
2 Aprilia 1 4 1 4 1 4 2 1 2 2 4 9 4 5 243
3 Yamaha 5 17 7 5 10 7 12 3 6 13 6 7 5 14 111
EGA Honda 22 0
Pos. Manufacturer JPN
MAL
ESP
ITA
FRA
MAD
NED
GBR
GER
CZE
IMO
CAT
AUS
ARG
Pts

[9]

References

  • 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.
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Noyes, Dennis; Scott, Michael (1999), Motocourse: 50 Years Of Moto Grand Prix, Hazleton Publishing Ltd, ISBN 1-874557-83-7
  2. ^ "motogp.com · 500cc World Standing 1998". www.motogp.com.
  3. ^ "motogp.com · 500cc World Standing 1998". www.motogp.com. Archived from the original on 2017-08-05. Retrieved 2010-06-09.
  4. ^ "500cc Grand Prix entry list for 1998".
  5. ^ "motogp.com · 250cc World Standing 1998". www.motogp.com.
  6. ^ "motogp.com · 125cc World Standing 1998". www.motogp.com. Archived from the original on 2012-09-17. Retrieved 2010-06-09.
  7. ^ "GP Marlboro de Argentina – 500cc – World Championship Classification" (PDF). MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. 25 October 1998. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
  8. ^ "1998 championship standings". classic.autosport.com. Autosport. Archived from the original on 27 November 2016. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
  9. ^ "GP Marlboro de Argentina – 125cc – World Championship Classification" (PDF). MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. 25 October 1998. Retrieved 26 November 2016.