The following is a presentation of Prime Network.
These drivers truly compete on the edge at over 100 miles per hour.
In the pinnacle of motorcycle racing around the world, the World Grand Prix of motorcycle racing series.
Haramma in Spain is the unexpected venue for the eighth round of the 1991 500 and 250cc World Championships.
They're at Haramma when they expected to be at Rijeka in Yugoslavia,
but the political situation in that country was a judge to be too dangerous to host a Grand Prix race.
So instead, they arrived for the first time since 1988 at a revamped Haramma circuit.
And its reigning world champion, Wayne Rainey, who set the early pace fastest in Friday practice.
It's sweltering at Haramma with the temperatures soaring up in the mid-30s
and the goings very hot and very tough indeed on this bumpy circuit.
Rainey's giving it everything he's got.
He's second in the championship and knows that he needs a win here
if he's to improve his chances of retaining that number one place.
Kevin Schwantz has got other ideas though.
If anybody needs another win, it's him.
Second in the world last year, but only lying in third place in the World Championship at the moment.
Schwantz though sets an absolutely scorching pace.
Wayne Gardner is back to something like his old self,
with a new chassis to the Rothmans Honda here at Haramma.
But there are still things to be sorted out.
As you can see, Gardner tying himself in all sorts of knots over the famous crest.
His teammate Mick Doohan, leading the World Championship,
already has three victories to his credit and has scored in every round of the series so far.
Doohan's been in sparkling form aboard that Rothmans Honda.
Former World 250 champion Cito Pons unexpectedly gets a second chance to ride in his home Grand Prix.
Injured before the Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez,
he's back in action for the European Grand Prix here at Haramma.
Those injuries have taken a long time to heal and he's down in 13th place in qualifying,
not the Cito Pons of old.
Also back in action, and just as spectacular as ever, Jean-Philippe Rougier.
Having all sorts of handling problems aboard his French Yamaha.
The same place, but on another lap.
And would you believe the French former 250 ace does it again?
Wayne Gardner much happier than he's been of late.
Just what have Honda done to make all the difference in Spain?
Honda realised the problem for about the third or fourth Grand Prix.
So they built me a new chassis and basically it's the engine back down,
similar settings to last year towards the end of the year, which I was really comfortable with.
And for this year for Mick, they've pushed the engine up something like 30 or 40 millimetre higher
up in the chassis and it's okay for Mick's style, but for my type of style,
it's much more difficult for me to get any feel in it on braking and of course getting on the throttle.
So they've gone ahead and made this chassis and it seems to be working a lot easier for me.
John Kaczynski on the Marlborough Team Roberts Yamaha, fourth fastest in practice
and fifth in the World Championship.
But he's still without that elusive Grand Prix victory in the 500cc class.
The 250cc reigning World Champion is finding the going tough in the big bikes.
The man who's been the revelation of the 1991 Grand Prix season.
Mick Dewan, third in the world last year and looking for the number one plate in 1991.
He's third fastest in practice, but just four tenths of a second behind the leader.
Labs like that won't help him get on top.
How bumpy is the circuit out there?
Well, you know, yesterday we had some problems because we set it up for Supercross,
you know, that's what it's like out there.
And, you know, I just really can't understand why they changed the race from Yugoslavia to here.
Sure, no Yugoslavia, but why here, you know, like the Superbike guys have a tough enough time here
and their chassis work is suspension.
All we've got here is a lighter bike and suspension we're meant to set up for this type of thing.
It's just dangerous and I think it's, you know, an unprofessional approach for the racing we're doing here.
There is talk of the race being shortened.
I believe you're dead against that.
Yeah, well, you know, like all us guys like train all the off season and even during the season to race these machines
and then someone says, oh, it's hot, you know, it's not too good for us, you know.
What are they, you know, like, you know, sure it's tough on everyone,
but that's what it is, is about man and machine, not about machine and oh, the man's getting tired.
Let's stop the race, you know, like, come on, give us a break.
This portion of the World Grand Prix of motorcycle racing is brought to you by Yamaha Motorcycles.
See the full line of exciting 1991 Yamahas at your Yamaha dealer today.
World champion Wayne Rainey, second fastest in practice.
And without a Grand Prix win since his home Grand Prix in the United States back in April,
he desperately wants a 20 point maximum here.
He's one of two Dunlop shod riders at the top of the practice leaderboard.
Despite moments like that, it looks like the Dunlops have got their act together.
Yeah, we've had the Japanese over and they've been keeping track of the tires a lot closer than they used to.
So, you know, I think they're beginning to learn some stuff and also the English Dunlop guys,
they're doing a good job and they brought some good stuff here that had an improvement
over what we've had the last three races.
So maybe we're stumbling on to something.
There may be smoother and more elegant riders in the world,
but there's certainly no one more spectacular than Kevin Schwantz.
Yeah, 32 laps around here is really going to be hot.
The temperature's in excess, I think, of 35, 36 degrees.
So it's going to be, you know, the fit man's race.
Whoever's the strongest at the end, I think, will be the guy who wins.
And a quick start and a quick getaway, I don't think, will do it tomorrow.
And it's going to be hard on equipment and on tires.
Tactical rides, do you think, to preserve the tires?
Yeah, it's going to be. I think everybody's going to have some problems in the heat.
Not that the tires are going to, you know, not last the race.
It's just going to be the grip's better in the beginning.
Whoever conserves them and is easier on them in the beginning
will be there a lot faster at the end.
The crowds pour into the Harama circuit,
and they're eager to get a glimpse of their road race heroes.
There's a 20-kilometer traffic jam of people trying to get into the circuit,
and that's only on Saturday.
Come race day on Sunday, 10,000 people are locked out of the circuit
because there's been a limit set of only 66,000 who can see the race.
It's certainly hot work on the grid.
35 degrees and up is the temperature,
which means the tarmac temperature is even higher.
It's going to be a long, grueling and very, very hot race indeed.
A look, then, at the grid for the 500cc Grand Prix of Europe.
In pole position, it's Kevin Schwantz.
Alongside him, Wayne Rainey.
Mick Doohan, his third fastest, and John Kaczynski completes the front row.
On the second row, Wayne Gardner for Rochmont Honda.
Eddie Lawson on the Kajiba, Juan Garriga, and Doug Chandler.
32 laps of the race ahead.
The lights go green, and it's a superb start from Mick Doohan aboard the Honda.
A good start, too, from the reigning world champion, Wayne Rainey.
But it's Mick Doohan who leads into the first corner,
charging through the heat haze of a Spanish Sunday afternoon,
and a good start from Wayne Gardner, too.
Schwantz, muscling his way through on the inside, takes a look over his shoulder,
but it's Mick Doohan who sets the early pace.
Wayne Rainey in second.
Gardner is third.
Schwantz holding on to fourth position around the long right-hander.
Eddie Lawson's up there, too, among the front runners.
What a brilliant start from the 25-year-old world championship leader
aboard the Rochmont Honda,
and Doohan setting a scorching pace in the scorching Spanish sunlight.
As the rest of the field sorts itself out, Doohan is already way ahead.
A view from the curbside camera as the riders flash past at over 150 miles an hour,
but already there's a breakaway.
The two men who lead the world championship, lead the Grand Prix of Europe,
Doohan and Rainey.
Third is Wayne Gardner,
and that's a heartening sight to see Wayne Gardner back on the pace
and in third position in this race.
Rochmont Honda leads.
Marbury Yamaha in second place.
Then the Rochmont Honda of Wayne Gardner,
followed by the lucky strike Suzuki of Kevin Schwantz.
That's the leading privateer, Ireland's Eddie Laycock.
But at the front there's already a scrap developing between Rainey and Doohan,
but it's Doohan who's got the upper hand at the moment.
Doohan and Rainey lead,
and then there's a gap before we get Wayne Gardner in third,
Kevin Schwantz is fourth,
then Eddie Lawson, John Kaczynski.
The pace as hot as the temperature and through into the lead has gone Wayne Rainey.
It's Rainey that leaves.
He slipped past Mick Doohan,
caught him napping,
and it's Doohan in second place,
can only tuck in behind last year's world champion.
So the action already fast and furious in this European Grand Prix
at the Rebound Haramma Circuit is Rainey leading from Doohan.
The Yamaha leads the Honda.
Now can Wayne Rainey break clear as he's done so often in the past?
It'll be a strength-sapping afternoon of racing out there on that scorching hot circuit,
but there's nobody fitter than Wayne Rainey,
and there's nobody more determined than Mick Doohan,
and a moment there for Mick Doohan,
getting into all sorts of trouble on the bumpy surface of the Haramma track.
But Doohan recovering there.
He's lost a few yards,
but not really any significant ground.
Mission ahead of Wayne Gardner,
but the leading duo have opened up a terrific lead at the front.
They played it exactly right in the early stages.
Schwantz, Gardner, Lawson, Kaczynski,
Juan Garriga, Cito Pons,
Jean-Philippe Rougier,
and Didier Deradeguez,
followed by Adrian Marilas and Doug Chandler.
And there's that moment that almost cost Mick Doohan his first race crash of the year.
It's still Wayne Rainey out front,
and Mick Doohan in second place.
Doohan can't get close enough to slipstream the race leader.
This is the battle for third place between Kevin Schwantz and Wayne Gardner.
It's great to see Gardner back on song.
And I think Mick Doohan's slightly closer,
but it's still Wayne Rainey out front.
And the fastest lap indeed has gone to Wayne Rainey
on that scorching second lap when he took the lead.
But they're still not down to their practice times just yet,
some two seconds to come out yet.
And the pace will get faster and hotter.
Rainey from Doohan.
And Rainey's really going for it,
trying to break the back of the opposition.
And there's a fall of air.
The number 23 bike of Andy Loiter.
Loiter trying to get it going again,
but not succeeding.
Rainey now out on his own.
He's opened up a gap.
Doohan still hanging in there, or at least trying to.
But it looks as if Wayne Rainey has determined to get clear,
and that's exactly what he's doing.
The gap is growing all the time.
And Wayne Rainey looking in absolutely magnificent form,
although perhaps Mick Doohan coming back slightly there.
Doohan has to concentrate hard.
He has to concentrate everything on the rear wheel of his adversary
who's leading the race at the moment.
That's a bird's eye view of the Harama circuit.
Schwantz is pulling clear in third.
Fourth is Gardner, still in fifth place, Eddie Lawson.
Sixth is John Kaczynski.
And in seventh spot, right on his wheels,
is Juan Garriga on the number six bike.
Another fastest lap from Wayne Rainey, a race leader.
Second in the World Championship.
And he wants to get back into the lead of the World Championship.
Doohan on the number three bike aboard the Rothman Tonda.
A win not quite so important for him.
He's finished every race on the rostrum so far this year.
But he wants another win.
Doohan has won races in Spain and in Italy, also in Austria.
He's finished second in Japan and Australia and the USA.
And he wants a win here.
But at the moment, Wayne Rainey is trying to deprive him of that victory.
And Rainey looking in absolutely brilliant form.
This is more like the form that took him to the World Title last year.
But he's finding it a lot tougher in 1991 than he did in 1990.
And the man that is providing all the opposition
is the Rothman Tonda ace from Australia, Mick Doohan.
Doohan has absolutely rocketed to prominence.
He was very much the second man in the Rothman Tonda team last year,
at least at the beginning of last year.
And now he's very much the number one.
Schwantz in third position, coming under pressure again from Wayne Gardner,
the 1987 World Champion.
And Doohan has set his sights on being Australia's second 500cc World Champion.
Schwantz still managing to hold off Gardner,
the Suzuki staying ahead of the Rothman Tonda.
Honda, remember, flew in a chassis for Wayne Gardner, especially for this race.
And it looks as if it's a move that absolutely has paid off.
Gardner in fourth place.
And it looks to me as if Schwantz is very much concerned
at the fact that Gardner's right behind him and he's unable to shake him off.
Schwantz and Gardner.
Behind them, it's Eddie Lawson on the ever-improving Kajiba.
Schwantz, the Texan Tornado in third place in the championship,
a winner in the first Grand Prix of the year,
and a winner in the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim.
Rainey again upping the pace, again setting the fastest lap.
He's taken this race by the throat.
He took the lead on the second lap, and he intends to lead it until the checkered flag.
Massive crowd sweltering in the Spanish sunshine.
The certainly the hottest Grand Prix of the year, Schwantz taking another look over his shoulder
to see that Wayne Gardner's still there right on his rear wheel.
Two very distinctive riding styles, and it looks like Gardner is closing all the time
right on his back wheel now, but there's nobody closing on this man,
nobody closing on the race leader, Wayne Rainey.
Another fastest lap for Wayne Rainey.
And he's decided that he's going to be the dominant force in this race,
and that's exactly what he is.
There's nothing he likes better than taking it on at the front,
doing all the hard work, leading from the start if possible.
Wayne Rainey, an absolutely brilliant Grand Prix racer,
and he's 1.4 seconds ahead now.
And it's a long gap, five seconds before we get Kevin Schwantz in third place,
Gardner in fourth, and another gap before we see Eddie Lawson,
and it's Kozinski and Garida.
The style that won him the World Championship last year.
Rainey from Dewan.
And Gardner's got ahead of Schwantz, it's Gardner now in third place,
Schwantz in fourth,
while Wayne Gardner looked as if he was preparing to make a move,
and that's exactly what he's done.
He swept through to take third place.
So it's Rothman's Hondas in second and third,
and the Marlbury Yamaha leading with the Lucky Strike Suzuki in fourth position.
Plus one and a half seconds, says the pit board for Wayne Rainey.
He's one and a half seconds ahead of Mick Dewan in second place,
the American leading, the Australian in second place,
with his compatriot Wayne Gardner in third spot.
Fourth is Schwantz.
Fifth, Eddie Lawson.
Sixth, John Kozinski.
Seventh, Juan Gariga.
And Lawson looking very cool and calm.
Lawson holding off John Kozinski and pulling away from him, in fact,
and John Kozinski looks far from content out there on the track.
Kozinski coming under pressure from Juan Gariga.
The crowd roar as Juan Gariga tries to go up the inside,
but Kozinski manages to repulse the attack from the Spaniard,
former runner-up in the 250cc world championship.
John Kozinski, the 250cc world champion last year,
when he swept all before him in the quarter-liter class,
moved up to the 500s this year,
currently in fifth place in the championship.
Juan Gariga hasn't adapted to the 500s as swiftly as John Kozinski,
but Kenny Roberts warned his protégé Kozinski
when he moved into the Blue Ribbon class
that it would take him time to get used to the bikes,
to get used to the different style and technique
and the hotter competition in the 500s.
Kozinski's finding those words to be absolutely true.
Race leader Wayne Rainey coming up already to lap the first of the backmarkers.
That's Simon Buckmaster.
And Buckmaster about to get the Wayne Rainey treatment.
Rainey aviating the front wheel as he powers onwards,
and Rainey goes through, and there's somebody off the circuit,
and that's Doug Chandler aboard the Yamaha.
And Chandler getting sideways as he gets back onto the track,
but Chandler lucky to be back into the race because he ran off the track.
Mick Duhan in second place,
trying everything he knows to get on terms with his Yamaha rival,
but unfortunately it's not proving effective
because Wayne Rainey is pulling further clear with every lap.
Duhan, though, safe in second place.
Well ahead of his teammate Wayne Gardner in third spot.
And that's the incident which saw Doug Chandler go off the track.
He's in the gravel trap at the side of the circuit,
but he manages to stay upright.
He just goes straight on.
There's a lot of run-off there, and he manages to get back into the race.
Still the battle for third place raging on between Wayne Gardner and Kevin Schwantz,
two old adversaries.
They've slugged it out many times before,
and Gardner's got the upper hand this time.
It's Gardner in third, in fourth place, Kevin Schwantz.
This portion of the world grand...
Winner of the world championship in 1987
and four times the world championship winner in the 500cc class, Eddie Lawson.
He's transformed the fortunes of the Italian Kajiba machine this year
and ridden absolutely brilliantly.
Eddie Lawson, many say the finest rider of his generation.
Wayne Rainey has come up perhaps to supplant him.
Always a fantastic stylist.
Lawson won three of his titles for Yamaha, one for Honda.
Can he do it for the Italian team?
Kevin Schwantz on the Suzuki in slow motion
and getting it absolutely sideways.
The rear wheel spinning there around the left-hander
and the bike going absolutely sideways.
That's the style which Kevin Schwantz gets away with all the time.
Other riders wouldn't manage it.
And this is the style, the sure and certain style
of the reigning world champion, Wayne Rainey,
again popping that front wheel up out of that corner.
Rainey with a healthy lead now in this 500cc eighth round of the championship.
The newly resurfaced Harama circuit is quite different.
There are several different sections from the last time the Grand Prix stars were here
when Kevin McGee won his only 500cc Grand Prix down the field.
The battle is going on between Adrian Morillas and Eddie Lawson.
Morillas goes through and it looks like Lawson might have some problems.
Morillas in eighth position and Lawson looks around behind him
and indeed Eddie Lawson has certainly got some problems
when things were going really well for him.
Lawson has hit trouble on the Kojima.
Rainey has already gone through and this is the runner-up in the race so far.
And it doesn't look like he'll catch the race leader, Wayne Rainey.
Kevin Tronc in fourth position and heading for another massive moment
but it almost looks like he does it on purpose.
Tronc spinning that back wheel and getting it absolutely sideways.
It's a big contrast to the style of Wayne Rainey.
It's a style that's serving him well, smooth and sure.
Around the contours, the twists and turns of this Harama circuit.
This is the third place man, Wayne Gardner.
He's never quite recaptured the success that he achieved
in that championship-winning season of 1987.
He's had more than his fair share of injuries, more than his fair share of crashes.
But nobody has ever doubted the grit and determination of the Australian.
Gardner coming up behind, a back marker.
Number 32, that's Michael Rudroth, aboard his three-cylinder Honda.
This, the four-cylinder Honda of Wayne Gardner.
The race leader, Wayne Rainey, he's done it absolutely magnificently.
And as he starts his last lap of the Harama circuit,
Wayne Rainey is heading towards another Grand Prix victory.
It'll be his third win of the year.
He won in Australia, he won in the USA,
and he's heading for victory in the European Grand Prix.
And you have to hand it to Wayne Rainey.
He's done it in absolutely magnificent style.
He hasn't put a wheel wrong, there have been no big moments.
The Dunlop tyres have behaved absolutely perfectly, and so has the Marlborough Yamaha.
It's another Grand Prix victory for Wayne Rainey.
And it's a long wait before we see the second place man.
In fact, over seven and a half seconds back is Mick Doohan in second place.
But Doohan will retain the lead in the World Championship.
And then another long wait.
Some 25 seconds or so before we get the third place man.
And that is Wayne Gardner.
And it's terrific to see Wayne Gardner on the winner's rostrum
for the first time in the 1991 season.
20 World Championship points then for Wayne Rainey, 17 for Doohan.
Gardner gets 15, and Kevin Schwantz in fourth place picks up 13 points.
Brzezinski is fifth, the head of Goriga, Jean-Philippe Rougier making his comeback,
and Adrian Marilas aboard his Sonoto Yamaha.
This portion.
Champagne spraying in Spain then for Mick Doohan, for Wayne Rainey,
and for Wayne Gardner when he can get the top of the bottle.
Gardner hasn't had a lot of practice at that this year,
but it's nice to see him back there on the victory rostrum.
A brilliant performance from Wayne Rainey,
and he's delighted with that third Grand Prix win of the 1991 season.
The World Championship chase then, 1.43 to Mick Doohan, 1.31 to Wayne Rainey.
And then Kevin Schwantz, a fair way back in third position.
Fourth is Gardner, fifth is John Brzezinski, and sixth, Eddie Lawson.
Congratulations, a tough race, but oh, a vital win.
Yeah, we really needed it today. Thanks, Wayne.
Yeah, the Dunlop tyres hung in there today, you know,
and I think maybe they're a little bit better than the Michelin today.
The thing never went off, it had good traction all the way around the corners,
and I was really glad for the Dunlop.
Reversal of last week's race, really, where you were chasing Doohan hard,
this time he was chasing you hard.
Yeah, the whole time, you know, he just, I think he rode a smart race.
He didn't really have to win this thing, and we're the ones that have to catch up.
So, you know, next week, two weeks in Athens, a different story.
First win, what, for five Grand Prix?
An important victory for you psychologically.
Yeah, it seems like a year, really.
We've been working hard, the whole team has,
and, you know, it just finally came together for us.
A lot to look forward to.
Yeah, there is, it's going to be, there's a long season left,
and right now it's too early to think about anything else,
but trying to make that bike better.
Wayne was just riding really good today.
I think he was really hungry for a win,
and it looked like it from the warm-up here on the free practice on Friday,
he was going really well, and he just beat us.
Was that tyre problem?
The tyres were OK, you know, I was sliding around and spinning a bit,
but, you know, I think he just rode, you know, better than I did today.
Twelve points, still the championship difference,
so not the end of the world, not the finish first this time.
No, you know, like, it would have been good to win,
but there's more races to go, and, you know, as you say, we scored some points,
and that's what we're here for, really.
It's been a long time, I tell you, it's been a long, hard year,
and it's nice to get a roster in place.
I had a good race with Kevin, you know,
he got me in Austria, and I split up there, and he got through,
and I wasn't about to let it happen again here,
so I just put my head down and tried hard.
A well-deserved lap of honour then for Wayne Rainey,
the victor of the European Grand Prix,
the winner of the eighth round of the 500cc championship.
Will Luca Catalora be the winner of the eighth round of the 250cc title,
or will Helmut Bradl spoil his intended party in Spain?
Catalora, who's in pole position,
for the eighth round of the 250cc championship.
Bradl, alongside him, his ever-present shadow these days.
Carlos Cardas, in third place in practice,
followed by Pierre-Francesco Killy and Wilco Zingenberg.
It's Romboni, Schmid, Reggiani and Marty Wimmer on the Suzuki
on the second row of the grid.
And it certainly isn't any cooler for the 250cc race.
Over 27 laps.
Carlos Cardas left on the start as the other riders blast away,
and it's a good start from Helmut Bradl.
And it's Bradl who's got the early drop,
but Catalora comes through.
Catalora in second place.
Helmut Bradl leads.
Loris Reggiani on the number 13 bike had a good start too.
And there's just not enough room for all the riders.
36 goes off, and that's a full...
And that's Corrado Catalano,
aboard the Rothmans Honda from Italy.
But it's Helmut Bradl leading aboard his HB Honda
with the Rothmans Honda of Luca Catalora in second place
around this long swooping right-handed bend.
The view from our curb camera as they flash past.
But it's Bradl who leads on the number four bike.
Luca Catalora on number three.
Then Loris Reggiani and Pierre-Francesco Killy
as the rest of the riders sweep through in minor stern.
And there's a replay from our high camera,
the bird's-eye view of that crash.
Catalano loses it.
Two riders go wide, but it's only Catalano
who's out of the race.
And it's Helmut Bradl in the lead still.
Luca Catalora in second place,
but tucked in right behind the slipstream
of the yellow machine and going up the inside this time.
But he's not close enough,
and it's still Helmut Bradl leading.
Luca Catalora second, then Loris Reggiani
and Killy and Doriano Romboni.
Not a good start for number six Martin Wimmer.
He's suffered from a series of bad starts
aboard that Suzuki this year.
In fact, Luca Catalora had snatched the lead,
but he ran wide, allowing Helmut Bradl to go through.
Now Catalora's taken it up again.
Catalora snatched back the advantage in the 250cc race
from Helmut Bradl.
Still Reggiani shadowing them in third place
aboard the number 13 machine.
Then it's Pierre-Francesco Killy, Doriano Romboni,
Carlos Cardas going up the inside,
making up for that poor start.
And Wilco Zielenberg is there too on the number five Honda.
But terrific action in this 250cc Spanish Grand Prix,
and it's Luca Catalora who's providing the thrills
at the front of the field.
Catalora from Bradl, Reggiani from Killy,
and Carlos Cardas from Spain on the number two machine.
Luca Catalora, the world championship leader,
and the man who's in second place in the title chase
is also in second place in the race.
Coming up through the field,
that's the number eight bike of Jochen Schmid.
Carlos Cardas has moved up a lot,
but his progress has come to a halt.
He's now behind the number nine,
Aprilia of Pierre-Francesco Killy.
It's Honda's first and second.
Aprilia in third place.
Catalora leading.
Bradl in second place,
and Bradl pulls out of the slipstream
to make another attempt at the lead.
Helmut Bradl goes through to lead.
Luca Catalora in second position.
Bradl there, a perfect slipstreaming maneuver
down the straight.
It's Helmut Bradl.
Bradl who won his first Grand Prix in Spain,
and he's looking for a Spanish double
to win this second Grand Prix in Spain.
Bradl leads.
Catalora in second position.
Catalora, the former world 125cc champion.
He's already said he's moving up to the 500s next year,
but he wants the 250cc crown.
And then he'll be on course for a full set.
Bradl from Catalora.
And up into third place has gone Carlos Cardas,
ahead of Pierre-Francesco Killy.
That's Cardas third,
giving the Spanish crowd something to cheer about,
and Cardas now setting off after the leading duo.
Bradl, Catalora.
Cardas and Pierre-Francesco Killy in fourth position.
Helmut Bradl breaking hard for the left-hander,
and Carlos Cardas moving up closely,
but a moment there as the front end of the Honda
gets slightly unstable.
It's still Bradl from Catalora.
Cardas in third position.
Three Hondas out front.
The first Aprilia in fourth position
in the shape of Pierre-Francesco Killy.
But the leading trio is Bradl, Catalora, and Cardas,
the 30-year-old German
who won his first Grand Prix this year.
He had to wait quite a long time,
but now there's no stopping him,
and he's leading at Harama.
Bradl, Catalora, and Cardas,
followed by Pierre-Francesco Killy on the No. 9 machine.
Loris Veggiani, No. 13,
and through into the lead goes Cardas.
Just listen to the cheers of that Spanish crowd.
Cardas makes an absolutely superb overtaking manoeuvre,
and he's the fastest man on the track at the moment.
And Cardas now has got his head down.
He desperately needs a win this year.
Just look at that overtaking manoeuvre,
a perfect, out-breaking manoeuvre
at the end of the main straight.
Catalora back into third position momentarily,
but now back up into second as Cardas leads.
The order then, Carlos Cardas, Luca Catalora,
Helmut Bradl, and Pierre-Francesco Killy.
But Cardas back on form at last.
He's third in the World Championship at the moment,
but he needs a win in 1991.
He hasn't won one yet.
He was second in the opening Grand Prix in Japan,
and he's being shadowed and being slipstreamed
and being passed by Luca Catalora.
Catalora goes through immediately.
Cardas goes into the slipstream immediately.
He tries that out-breaking manoeuvre again,
and again it succeeds.
Carlos Cardas leads again for Spain.
Luca Catalora in second place for Italy,
and the German is in third position.
That's Helmut Bradl ahead of Pierre-Francesco Killy.
The 31-year-old Spaniard is out front,
but Luca Catalora has set his sights on that leading position.
He wants 20 World Championship points
just as badly as Carlos Cardas does,
and the Spanish crowd are going absolutely wild.
Just look at the cheers and the waves
that Carlos Cardas is getting back at this Harama circuit
for the first time since he had a horrendous crash here in 1988.
But Carlos Cardas, if only he'd got a good start,
he'd be well clear.
Instead, he's just inches clear of Luca Catalora.
But the crowd has certainly got something to shout about.
Catalora trying to go up the outside,
but failing that time.
That was never on,
but Carlos Cardas clinging on to the lead by the skin of his teeth.
The 31-year-old Spaniard leads runner-up in the World last year.
The number two plate holder.
And third in the World last year, Luca Catalora.
Last year, of course, Catalora was aboard the Yamaha.
This year, he's racing for Honda, the Rothmans' Honda Teamster.
And that's the sign that Carlos Cardas gets plus zero.
In other words, he can't relax on his laurels, and that's why,
because Carlos Cardas has been relegated to second place.
Again, he tries to go up the inside, but this time it doesn't work.
The battle for fifth, sixth and seventh rages on,
and there's a four-man fight for eighth, ninth and tenth as well.
It's currently being led by the number eight by Jochen Schmidt.
But it's Catalora who leads the race,
and Catalora is beginning to pull clear of Carlos Cardas.
And Cardas is clear of Helmut Vrandel for the time being,
but for how long will it stay that way?
Catalora.
Catalora, a Grand Prix winner in Japan and Australia,
and a winner in the USA.
Can he win here in Spain at the European Grand Prix?
There's still a long way to go in this race,
but he's setting about it in just the right fashion.
Catalora appears to have broken the back of the opposition.
Carlos Cardas gave it everything he's got,
but the man in form at the moment,
the man who's led the World Championship since the first Grand Prix,
is Luca Catalora, and Catalora is in brilliant form.
And now Carlos Cardas is beginning to come under a bit of pressure
from Helmut Vrandel.
Vrandel three times a Grand Prix winner already this year.
He may have left it a bit too late in this Grand Prix.
It doesn't look like he can do it.
1.1 seconds ahead now, Luca Catalora.
And through in the second place has gone Helmut Vrandel.
Vrandel is second.
Third is Carlos Cardas.
In fourth place it's Pierre-Francesco Killy.
But it's half the length of the straight
between Carlos Cardas in third
and Pierre-Francesco Killy in fourth position.
Still this battle for second spot isn't over yet.
They're slugging it out all around.
Twists and turns of this Orama circuit.
Vrandel holding that slender advantage.
But Carlos Cardas, the home rider,
determined to get back in front.
And there's an incident there on that right-handed corner.
And that's Fausto Ricci running back to remonstrate with the marshals.
They want the flags put out.
He's trying to tell the marshals to put the flags out.
There are three riders down in this incident,
but a lap earlier Stefan Prine had crashed there,
so it looks as if there was some oil on the circuit.
Three riders went down,
and still Fausto Ricci trying to get the marshals
to put out the oil flags.
And Ricci still remonstrating with them
as Stefan Prine cruises back into the race,
but it's too late for him to do any good.
It's not too late for Luca Catalora.
Again, he's ridden an absolutely magnificent race.
He looks over his shoulder,
but the good news for him is that there's clear road behind him.
He's opened up a four-second gap in the lead in this race.
And Luca Catalora in absolutely magnificent form.
And there in the background of your picture there,
Pier Francesco Killy crashing out of this race.
Killy was in fourth position,
and Killy has gone crashing out as Luca Catalora powers onwards
on the Rothmans Honda unaware of what's happened.
But Pier Francesco Killy has crashed out of fourth position.
That's the second-placed man, Helmut Bradl,
and he's now got clear of Carlos Cardas in third position.
It looks like Cardas may have settled for that third,
and there's confirmation.
Pier Francesco Killy limps back towards the pits.
The Red Cross man wants him to receive some attention,
but Killy's having none of it.
And here's that in replay right at the top of your picture.
Pier Francesco Killy high-sided out of the European Grand Prix.
He climbs over the barrier, and still,
the first-aid official wants him to receive treatment,
but he doesn't want to at all.
Up into fourth place then has gone Wilco Zielenberg,
and he's in a hell of a battle with the number seven bike.
That's Masahiro Shimizu, the Japanese rider, and Loris Reggiani.
It's a three-man fight for that fourth place.
Wilco Zielenberg is at the head of it.
But at the head of the field altogether,
and on his last lap is Luca Catalora.
Catalora's played it absolutely magnificently.
He got clear of the three-man fight
that was for the lead early in the race.
He broke the back of the opposition.
The Rothman's Honda has been absolutely magnificent,
and Luca Catalora aviates the front wheel.
He's on his final circuit of the Harama track,
and Luca Catalora takes the checkered flag
to win the European Grand Prix.
That's his fifth Grand Prix victory of the year,
and it establishes him even further ahead
in the World Championship chase.
Luca Catalora in absolutely magnificent form,
another Grand Prix win for him.
Helmut Radl takes the checkered flag
four and a half seconds back in second place.
And then we have to wait another 10 seconds
before Carlos Cardus finishes in third position.
Confirmation of those 20 World Championship points
for Catalora ahead of Radl, Cardus, and Zielenberg.
Then it's Reggiani, Masahiro Shimizu,
Doriano Romboni, and Jochen Schmidt.
The World Championship chase 141 to 128,
Cardus third on 114,
and Zielenberg in fourth position on 99 points.
Reggiani, Shimizu, Jochen Schmidt,
and Pierre-Francesco Killy,
who unfortunately crashed out of that race,
make up the top eight.
The fifth time that Luca Catalora
has managed to spray our cameras with champagne.
And the World Championship is hotting up
in the 125cc category.
And leading into the first corner,
it's Loris Cafferossi, the reigning World Champion,
ahead of former World Champ and teammate Fausto Grissini.
And there's a tumble there on the first corner.
And that's two Japanese riders
committing harikiri on the first corner,
Wakai and Unimoto.
Unimoto on the number 20 machine,
Wakai number 51,
who crashed on the first corner
of this 125cc European Grand Prix.
Meanwhile out front, it's the two teammates slugging it out.
Fausto Grissini, World Champion in 1986,
and Loris Cafferossi, World Champion last year.
Let's have a look at that incident again,
and it looks as if Wakai is the first to go down,
but it looks as if he was punted by another machine
because there's simply not enough room on that corner.
The two leaders are pulling out a gap.
It's Cafferossi and Ueda out front,
with Grissini dropping back,
but immediately Grissini is back into the lead.
And now Ueda is taking up the challenge,
and Ueda comes out of the slipstream,
outbrakes them into the corner,
and it's Ueda who leads.
Grissini in second place,
but Grissini fighting back straight away.
He doesn't want to give up this 125cc category,
the most hotly contested of them all.
The lead changing all the time,
as Ueda almost goes back to third place then.
Out of the race goes the number six bike,
that's Ezio Giannola from Italy,
aboard the Spanish derby.
56 is Ueda.
One is Loris Cafferossi.
Cafferossi sweeps through on the inside line.
28 in third position is Ralph Waldman,
then number seven, Grissini.
But the lead swapping so rapidly.
Out front now has gone Cafferossi,
he's made the break.
In second position is Fausto Grissini.
They're leaning on each other,
they're trying everything to gain the advantage.
And there is a fall, and that is Ueda.
Ueda has crashed out in the closing stages of the race.
Loris Cafferossi takes the chequered flag
to win the European Grand Prix,
and here's that incident in slow motion.
A classic 125cc high side puts Ueda out of the race.
The following rider there taking avoiding action
is Fausto Grissini.
But that's the second time this year
that Ueda has crashed out of a Grand Prix
in spectacular fashion.
Loris Cafferossi then, the winner in Harama,
ahead of his teammate Fausto Grissini.
The two aboard AGV Marlboro Hondas.
Peter Otel is third, Jorge Martinez in fourth position.
Aboard the Coronas machine, Loris Cafferossi
leading the World Championship by six points
from Fausto Grissini.
As the three-wheeler charioteers power away from the line,
it's a brilliant start for Steve Webster
and Gavin Simmons on the number three machine,
the former World Champions.
But they surrender on that first corner
to the number 19 bike of Klaffenbach.
He's the man that suddenly rocketed to form
and is leading the European Grand Prix.
Steve Webster and Gavin Simmons in second place at the moment.
Not such a good start for Alain Michel and Simon Virchel.
They're in third spot. Darren and Sean Dixon,
well, they qualified in third place for the Sidecar Grand Prix,
but they're out of the race.
Taken up the lead is Alain Michel and Simon Virchel,
but they're relegated to second spot
by Steve Webster and Gavin Simmons.
It's Webster and Simmons who lead.
The reigning World Champions in second place.
The former three-time World Champion,
Steve Webster, is leading the race.
It's Webster pulling ahead
and Steve Webster riding magnificently
and looking like he may well be heading
for a fifth Sidecar Grand Prix win of the 1991 season.
Out of the race has gone Klaffenbach,
so that five out of the six riders
involved in the battle for top three places are Britons.
The only exception, Alain Michel,
the driver of that outfit there.
Webster leads Michel by almost seven seconds.
Michel, of course, has the British passenger in Simon Virchel.
They won the World Championship last year.
The distinctive yellow outfit
of Steve Abbott and Sean Smith,
campaigners on the Grand Prix trail for many, many years,
and heading for another rostrum placing
and heading for another Grand Prix win
by the looks of things.
Steve Webster and Gavin Simmons,
they've got four Grand Prix wins to their credit so far.
And this could well be win number five,
and that will put them way ahead
in the battle for the World Championship.
Webster wants a fourth World title,
and he wins the European Grand Prix
to put himself well on the way to that crown.
A win for Steve Webster and Gavin Simmons.
Alain Michel and Simon Virchel second ahead
of Steve Abbott and Sean Smith.
Steve Webster and Gavin Simmons then
with a 29-point lead at the top of the title table
over Rolf Bieland and Kurt Woltesberg.
This portion of the World Grand Prix of motorcycle racing
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