List of 250cc/Moto2 World Riders' Champions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the premier championship of motorcycle road racing, which has been divided into three classes: MotoGP, Moto2, and Moto3. Former classes that have been discontinued include 350cc, 250cc, 125cc, 50cc/80cc, MotoE, and Sidecar.[1] 250cc is the intermediate category; the 250cc refers to the size of the engines of the motorcycles that race in that class. For the engines configuration is inline-four since 2010 until 2018 and changed to inline-three since 2019. The Grand Prix Road-Racing World Championship was established in 1949 by the sport's governing body, the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM), and is the oldest motorsport world championship. The 250cc class was replaced in 2010 by a new class called Moto2. The 250cc engines were replaced by 600cc engines, which were supplied by Honda to all teams.[2] Since 2019, the Moto2 class engines are supplied by Triumph to all teams, and changed the engines from 600cc to 765cc.

A man in a jacket standing in front of a stall
Phil Read, who, along with Max Biaggi, holds the most 250cc championships, with four.

Points earned in these events count toward the riders' and constructors' world championships. These two are separate championships, but are based on the same point system. The number of points awarded at the end of each race to the top 15 qualifying riders depends on their placement. Points received by each finisher, from first 1st place to 15th place: 25, 20, 16, 13, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Historically, there have been several points systems.[3] Results from all current Grands Prix count towards the championships; in the past, only a certain number of results were counted.[4]

Phil Read and Max Biaggi have won the most championships, with four each. Dani Pedrosa is the youngest to win the championship; he was 19 years and 18 days old when he won the championship in 2004.[5] Italian riders have won the most championships; 16 riders have won a total of 25 championships. Riders from Spain have won the second most; ten riders have won a total of thirteen championships. Great Britain have won the third most, as four riders have won a total of nine championships. Bruno Ruffo won the inaugural championship in 1949. Hiroshi Aoyama was the last rider to win the 250cc championship in 2009. Toni Elías was the first champion of the Moto2 category.[6] Diogo Moreira is the current champion; he won the 2025 Moto2 World Championship.

Champions

Key
* Champion also won 500cc Championship in that season
† Champion also won 350cc Championship in that season
‡ Champion also won 125cc Championship in that season
— Indicates information is not available
  • The "Season" column refers to the season the competition was held, and wikilinks to the article about that season.
  • The "Margin" column refers to the margin of points by which the winner defeated the runner-up.

By season

More information Season, Country ...
250cc/Moto2 Motorcycle World Champions
Season Country Rider Constructor Grands Prix Poles Wins Podiums Fastest laps Points Clinched[7] # of rounds
remaining		 Margin
1949  Italy Bruno Ruffo Moto Guzzi 4[a] — 1 2 0 24 Round 4 of 4 0 5
1950  Italy Dario Ambrosini Benelli 4 — 3 4 3 24 Round 4 of 4 0 10
1951  Italy Bruno Ruffo Moto Guzzi 5[b] — 2 4 3 22 Round 5 of 5 0 4
1952  Italy Enrico Lorenzetti Moto Guzzi 6[c] — 2 5 2 28 Round 6 of 6 0 4
1953  West Germany Werner Haas‡ NSU 7[d] — 2 5 2 28 Round 6 of 7 1 5
1954  West Germany Werner Haas NSU 7[e] — 5 5 3 32 Round 4 of 7 3 6
1955  West Germany Hermann Paul Müller NSU 5 — 1 3 1 16 Round 5 of 5 0 2
1956  Italy Carlo Ubbiali‡ MV Agusta 6[f] — 5 5 4 32 Round 4 of 6 2 6
1957  United Kingdom Cecil Sandford Mondial 6 — 2 5 0 26 Round 5 of 6 1 10
1958  Italy Tarquinio Provini MV Agusta 6[g] — 4 4 5 32 Round 5 of 6 1 16
1959  Italy Carlo Ubbiali‡ MV Agusta 7[h] — 2 5 2 28 Round 5 of 6 1 12
1960  Italy Carlo Ubbiali‡ MV Agusta 6 — 4 6 4 32 Round 6 of 6 0 4
1961  United Kingdom Mike Hailwood Honda 11[i] — 4 8 3 44 Round 10 of 11 1 6
1962 Rhodesia and Nyasaland Jim Redman† Honda 10[j] — 6 9 2 48 Round 8 of 10 2 16
1963 Rhodesia and Nyasaland Jim Redman† Honda 12[k] — 4 9 2 44 Round 10 of 10 0 2
1964  United Kingdom Phil Read Yamaha 11[l] — 5 7 4 46 Round 10 of 11 1 4
1965  United Kingdom Phil Read Yamaha 12[m] — 7 9 6 56 Round 10 of 13 3 14
1966  United Kingdom Mike Hailwood† Honda 12[n] — 10 10 8 56 Round 7 of 12 5 22
1967  United Kingdom Mike Hailwood† Honda 13[o] — 5 8 7 50 Round 13 of 13 0 0[p]
1968  United Kingdom Phil Read‡ Yamaha 10[q] — 5 7 5 46 Round 10 of 10 0 0[r]
1969  Australia Kel Carruthers Benelli 12[s] — 3 7 3 89 Round 12 of 12 0 5
1970  United Kingdom Rodney Gould Yamaha 12[t] — 6 9 3 102 Round 11 of 12 1 18
1971  United Kingdom Phil Read Yamaha 12[u] — 3 5 3 73 Round 12 of 12 0 5
1972  Finland Jarno Saarinen Yamaha 13[v] — 4 9 6 94 Round 12 of 13 1 1
1973  West Germany Dieter Braun Yamaha 11[w] — 4 5 2 80 Round 10 of 11 1 16
1974  Italy Walter Villa Harley-Davidson 10[x] 1 4 5 3 77 Round 8 of 10 2 19
1975  Italy Walter Villa Harley-Davidson 11[y] 5 5 6 4 85 Round 9 of 11 2 9
1976  Italy Walter Villa † Harley-Davidson 11[z] 7 7 8 7 90 Round 9 of 11 2 17
1977  Italy Mario Lega Morbidelli 12[aa] 0 1 5 1 85 Round 11 of 12 1 13
1978 South Africa Kork Ballington† Kawasaki 12[ab] 5 4 8 4 124 Round 12 of 12 0 6
1979 South Africa Kork Ballington† Kawasaki 12[ac] 3 7 9 7 141 Round 10 of 12 2 60
1980  West Germany Anton Mang Kawasaki Krauser[ad] 10 9 4 10 4 128 Round 7 of 10 3 41
1981  West Germany Anton Mang† Kawasaki 12 10 10 11 9 160 Round 10 of 12 2 65
1982  France Jean-Louis Tournadre Yamaha 12 0 1 8 2 118 Round 12 of 12 0 1
1983  Venezuela Carlos Lavado Yamaha 11 1 4 6 2 100 Round 10 of 11 1 27
1984  France Christian Sarron Yamaha 12 3 3 8 1 109 Round 11 of 12 1 9
1985  United States Freddie Spencer* Honda 12[ae] 6 7 8 6 127 Round 10 of 12 2 3
1986  Venezuela Carlos Lavado Yamaha 11 7 6 8 3 114 Round 10 of 11 1 6
1987  West Germany Anton Mang Honda 15 1 8 8 1 136 Round 13 of 15 2 28
1988  Spain Sito Pons Honda 15 1 4 11 2 231 Round 15 of 15 0 10
1989  Spain Sito Pons Honda 15 3 7 12 7 262 Round 12 of 15 3 72
1990  United States John Kocinski Yamaha 15 8 7 12 8 223 Round 15 of 15 0 15
1991  Italy Luca Cadalora Honda 15 4 8 12 8 237 Round 14 of 15 1 17
1992  Italy Luca Cadalora Honda 13 2 7 9 3 203 Round 11 of 13 2 44
1993  Japan Tetsuya Harada Yamaha 14 2 4 7 3 197 Round 14 of 14 0 4
1994  Italy Max Biaggi Aprilia 14 7 5 10 8 234 Round 14 of 14 0 20
1995  Italy Max Biaggi Aprilia 13 9 8 12 7 283 Round 11 of 13 2 63
1996  Italy Max Biaggi Aprilia 15 8 9 11 9 274 Round 15 of 15 0 6
1997  Italy Max Biaggi Honda 15 3 5 10 2 250 Round 15 of 15 0 2
1998  Italy Loris Capirossi Aprilia 14 8 2 9 3 224 Round 14 of 14 0 23
1999  Italy Valentino Rossi Aprilia 16 5 9 12 8 309 Round 15 of 16 1 48
2000  France Olivier Jacque Yamaha 16 5 3 11 4 279 Round 16 of 16 0 7
2001  Japan Daijiro Kato Honda 16 6 11 13 9 322 Round 15 of 16 1 49
2002  Italy Marco Melandri Aprilia 16 2 9 12 4 298 Round 15 of 16 1 57
2003  San Marino Manuel Poggiali Aprilia 16 3 4 10 6 249 Round 16 of 16 0 14
2004  Spain Dani Pedrosa Honda 16 4 7 13 8 317 Round 15 of 16 1 61
2005  Spain Dani Pedrosa Honda 16 5 8 11 7 309 Round 14 of 16 2 55
2006  Spain Jorge Lorenzo Aprilia 16 10 8 11 1 289 Round 16 of 16 0 17
2007  Spain Jorge Lorenzo Aprilia 17 9 9 12 3 312 Round 16 of 17 1 52
2008  Italy Marco Simoncelli Gilera 16 7 6 12 4 281 Round 15 of 16 1 37
2009  Japan Hiroshi Aoyama Honda 16 2 4 7 4 261 Round 16 of 16 0 22
2010  Spain Toni Elías Moriwaki 17 3 7 8 2 271 Round 14 of 17 3 70
2011  Germany Stefan Bradl Kalex 17 7 4 11 3 274 Round 17 of 17 0 23
2012  Spain Marc Márquez Suter 17 7 9 14 5 328 Round 16 of 17 1 59
2013  Spain Pol Espargaró Kalex 17 6 6 10 4 265 Round 16 of 17 1 40
2014  Spain Tito Rabat Kalex 18 11 7 14 5 346 Round 17 of 18 1 57
2015  France Johann Zarco Kalex 18 7 8 14 1 352 Round 15 of 18 3 118
2016  France Johann Zarco Kalex 18 7 7 10 4 276 Round 17 of 18 1 42
2017  Italy Franco Morbidelli Kalex 18 6 8 12 8 308 Round 17 of 18 1 65
2018  Italy Francesco Bagnaia Kalex 18 6 8 12 3 306 Round 17 of 18 1 9
2019  Spain Álex Márquez Kalex 19 6 5 10 5 262 Round 18 of 19 1 3
2020  Italy Enea Bastianini Kalex 15 0 3 7 2 205 Round 15 of 15 0 9
2021  Australia Remy Gardner Kalex 18 3 5 12 3 311 Round 18 of 18 0 4
2022  Spain Augusto Fernández Kalex 20 2 4 9 5 271.5 Round 20 of 20 0 29.5
2023  Spain Pedro Acosta Kalex 20 3 7 14 8 332.5 Round 18 of 20 2 83
2024  Japan Ai Ogura Boscoscuro 20[af] 2 3 8 1 274 Round 18 of 20 2 40
2025  Brazil Diogo Moreira Kalex 22 7 4 9 3 287 Round 22 of 22 0 30
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Multiple champions

More information Rider, Total ...
250cc/Moto2 Motorcycle multiple champions
Rider Total Seasons
United Kingdom Phil Read 4 1964, 1965, 1968, 1971
Italy Max Biaggi 4 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997
Italy Carlo Ubbiali 3 1956, 1959, 1960
United Kingdom Mike Hailwood 3 1961, 1966, 1967
Italy Walter Villa 3 1974, 1975, 1976
Germany Anton Mang 3 1980, 1981, 1987
Italy Bruno Ruffo 2 1949, 1951
Germany Werner Haas 2 1953, 1954
Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland Jim Redman 2 1962, 1963
South Africa Kork Ballington 2 1978, 1979
Venezuela Carlos Lavado 2 1983, 1986
Spain Sito Pons 2 1988, 1989
Italy Luca Cadalora 2 1991, 1992
Spain Dani Pedrosa 2 2004, 2005
Spain Jorge Lorenzo 2 2006, 2007
France Johann Zarco 2 2015, 2016
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By constructor

More information Constructor, Total ...
250cc/Moto2 Motorcycle world champions by constructor
Constructor Total
Japan Honda 16
Japan Yamaha 14
Germany Kalex 13
Italy Aprilia 9
Italy MV Agusta 4
Japan Kawasaki 4
Germany NSU 3
United States Harley-Davidson 3
Italy Moto Guzzi 3
Italy Benelli 2
Italy Mondial 1
Italy Morbidelli 1
Italy Gilera 1
Japan Moriwaki 1
Switzerland Suter 1
Italy Boscoscuro 1
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By nationality

More information Nationality, Riders ...
250cc/Moto2 Motorcycle world champions by nationality
Nationality Riders Total
 Italy 16 25
 Spain 10 13
 United Kingdom 4 9
 Germany 5 8
 France 4 5
 Japan 4 4
 United States 2 2
 Australia 2 2
Rhodesia 1 2
 South Africa 1 2
 Venezuela 1 2
 Finland 1 1
 San Marino 1 1
 Brazil 1 1
Close

Notes

  1. [a]
    Ruffo missed one race of the season.
  2. [b]
    Ruffo missed four races of the season.
  3. [c]
    Lorenzetti missed two races of the season.
  4. [d]
    Haas missed one race of the season.
  5. [e]
    Haas missed two races of the season.
  6. [f]
    Ubbiali missed one race of the season.
  7. [g]
    Provini missed three races of the season.
  8. [h]
    Ubbiali missed two races of the season.
  9. [i]
    Hailwood missed one race of the season.
  10. [j]
    Redman missed one race of the season.
  11. [k]
    Redman missed one race of the season.
  12. [l]
    Read missed three races of the season.
  13. [m]
    Read missed three races of the season.
  14. [n]
    Hailwood missed two races of the season.
  15. [o]
    Hailwood missed one race of the season.
  16. [p]
    Hailwood won on countback by having five wins compared to Phil Read's four.[8]
  17. [q]
    Read missed two races of the season.
  18. [r]
    Read and Bill Ivy had equal number of points, identical ranks obtained in all races (five wins and two second places each), and equal number of races in which they classified (seven races). To break the tie, their time in each of the four races where they both finished (namely the Dutch, East German, Czechoslovak, and Nations Grand Prix) were added up. Read's total time of 3:15:22.9 is faster than Ivy's 3:17:22.2, and thus Read was declared champion.[9]
  19. [s]
    Carruthers missed three races of the season.
  20. [t]
    Gould missed three races of the season.
  21. [u]
    Read missed five races of the season.
  22. [v]
    Saarinen missed two races of the season.
  23. [w]
    Braun missed five races of the season.
  24. [x]
    Villa missed four races of the season.
  25. [y]
    Villa missed five races of the season.
  26. [z]
    Villa missed two races of the season.
  27. [aa]
    Lega missed two races of the season.
  28. [ab]
    Ballington missed one race of the season.
  29. [ac]
    Ballington missed one race of the season.
  30. [ad]
    Anton Mang won the 1980 championship riding a Kawasaki Krauser motorcycle. FIM still counts this as a win under the Kawasaki brand.
  31. [ae]
    Spencer missed two races of the season.
  32. [af]
    Ogura missed one race of the season.

References

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