Mick Walker's Italian Racing Motorcycles

By: Mick Walker .

Italian Racing Motorcycles is second in the series. Italy has a reputation for style in all things, not least in motorcycles. The first pure-bred Italian motorcycles made their appearance at the beginning of the 20th century and included Bianchi, Borgo, Prinetti & Stucchi and Ferrera. By the 1920s these companies had been joined or replaced by newer concerns. Then came the pentarchia; Benelli, Bianchi, Garelli, Gilera and Guzzi, who fought hard for their share of the market. The golden age of Italian motorcycling lasted until 1957 when FB Mondial, Gilera and Guzzi retired from the sport. MV Agusta, Bianchi, Benelli, Morini and Ducati continued to fly the flag for Italy with considerable success.

Italy not only produced a host of world-beating machines, but also top riders including Carlo Ubbiali, Umberto Masetti, Tarquinio Provini, Libero Liberati and most notably, Giacomo Agostini.

Contents:

• Aermacchi
• Aprilia
• Benelli
• Bianchi
• Bimota
• Cagiva
• Ducati
• Garelli
• Gilera
• Laverda
• FB Mondial
• Morbidelli
• Moto Guzzi
• Moto Morini
• MV Agusta
• Parilla
• Paton
• Rumi

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