1998 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
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The 1998 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 50th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season.
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
- The Malaysian Grand Prix and Japanese Grand Prix swapped places, with Japan hosting the opening round Grand Prix, instead of Malaysia.
- The Malaysian Grand Prix moved from the Shah Alam Circuit to the Johor Circuit.
- The German Grand Prix moved from the Nürburgring to the Sachsenring because of the very low number of spectators who came to view the race there.
- The Austrian Grand Prix was removed from the calendar, mainly because of a low number of spectators.
- The Rio Grand Prix was removed from the calendar because of organisational problems.
- The Indonesian Grand Prix was removed from the calendar because of 1997 Asian financial crisis that affected the country and was replaced by the Argentine Grand Prix.
- The Madrid Grand Prix was added as an extra, one-off Grand Prix.
1998 Grand Prix season results
†† = Saturday race
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