This year marks the 50th anniversary of Barry Sheene winning his first 500cc road racing world championship crown. The hero of British bike sport repeated the feat on his works Suzuki RG500 the following year, was awarded the MBE a year after that and remains the last Brit to claim motorcycle sport’s ultimate prize.
All of which goes some way to why Goodwood recently announced it has chosen this year to pay tribute to Sheene’s extraordinary career and enduring legacy over its three headline motorsport events.
But Sheene was also much more than those impressive feats suggested. In addition to his 23 Grand Prix victories and back-to-back 500cc crowns, his glamorous celebrity style and larger-than-life personality made him the biggest star bike sport had ever known. Not one but two national headline news-grabbing crashes and a near superhuman ability to recover from the injuries incurred in those incidents only added to the legend.
In the ‘70s Sheene was the first bike racer whose fame transcended the sport. He made front page news; his good looks and cockney banter were rewarded with prime time TV shows; he was a poster boy to a generation; his profile brought unprecedented commercial and advertising opportunities and he revelled in the rewards and riches that brought: a Rolls-Royce with personalized ‘BS 7’ numberplate; a mansion in the country, a Penthouse Pet model girlfriend (and later wife) and the personal helicopter, to name but four.
But even that doesn’t tell the whole story. Sheene was also a ‘man of the people’ who was accessible to a level unimaginable in today’s sanitized Grand Prix paddock. He would happily stay after events to sign autographs and was also an outspoken champion for riders’ rights, a safety campaigner, occasional road rider and catalyst for motorcycling as a whole. Today’s racing gods rarely accomplish any one of those, let alone all of them.
Then, even after his retirement, Sheene remained in the public eye. He presented a Saturday evening TV programme, called Just Amazing, and turned first to saloon car and then truck racing, before emigrating to Australia where the warmer weather soothed his broken bones. Living Down Under, Barry established himself as TV commentator and a talent spotter/coach (Sheene was close to both Schwantz and Rossi, as well as a number of up-and-coming Australians). Latterly he got back on two wheels and was a popular classic racer at the Goodwood Revival.
Barry Steven Frank Sheene was born in September 1950 and as the only son (he also has a sister, Maggie) of a former bike racer and experienced motorcycle mechanic, Frank, was almost destined to become a motorcycle racer. His first race came at 17, in 1968, on a Bultaco (dad Frank had a close relationship with Paco Bulto) and won third time out. The following year, having already adopted a custom painted helmet with Donald Duck on the front, he came third in the British 125cc championship - before dominating it in 1970. Then, in 1971, aboard a 125cc twin cylinder Suzuki RT67, he entered the world 125cc championship and won his first GP, prompting factory support from Yamaha in the 250 class.
For 1973, by then regularly racing with his preferred number seven on the front of his bike, he was signed by Suzuki. He won the new F750 championship and was voted MCN Man of the Year. And that was just the start.
Sheene then led development of Suzuki’s new RG500 and, in March 1975, with a BBC documentary TV crew in tow, travelled to Florida for the prestigious Daytona 200. His infamous 180mph practice crash was recorded and made headlines globally. Although his recovery scuppered his 1975 season, it cemented Sheene as a star.
In 1976, with the RG500 now sorted, Sheene strolled to the 500cc world championship and was even more dominant in 1977, winning with six races to spare. But 1978 saw the start of Sheene’s decline when he was outpaced by the arriving American Kenny Roberts and Yamaha’s new TZ500.
After falling out with Suzuki, Barry raced a privateer Yamaha in 1980 and, with increasing factory support after winning the 1981 Swedish GP, mounted a serious challenge again in 1982. But just as it looked like a third crown was possible thanks to Yamaha’s new V4, Sheene had his second monumental crash, in practice for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, when he came over a blind rise and collided with a stricken bike at over 160mph, shattering both legs and breaking an arm. Despite another heroic comeback, in 1983, he was back on the now outpaced RG500. Other than a heroic third in the rain in South Africa, Sheene was never a contender again.
After retiring, Sheene raced in the British saloon car championship, became a TV presenter, then, in the late 1980s, he moved to Australia’s Gold Coast with his young family where he also worked as a TV commentator and presenter and helped young racers such as Mick Doohan, Troy Corser and Chris Vermeulen, who also later raced with number seven in Sheene’s honour.
Sheene’s own racing was rounded off with occasional classic racing outings, most notably at the Goodwood Revival. His last race was in 2002. In July of that year, he had been diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus and stomach and died the following March, leaving his wife Stephanie, daughter Sidonie and son Freddie.
For 2026, however, Goodwood is marking the great man’s life by, for the first time, celebrating one rider/driver across all three of its headline events: the 83rd Members’ Meeting on 18-19 April; the Festival of Speed (9-12 July) and the Goodwood Revival (18-20 September).
Steve Parrish, former professional motorcycle racer and friend of Barry said: “It's been said 'never meet your heroes’ but thank goodness I did! I met Barry in 1975 at Brands Hatch. Barry became my mentor, father, brother and mate all rolled into one. We became teammates with Suzuki in 1977 and what a wild, crazy, dangerous ride it became. Some say I was often in the Sheene slipstream, maybe so, but what a tow it was. I will never forget it and will always appreciate the memories, the man, my hero”
Goodwood founder, the Duke of Richmond CBE DL, added: “Barry raced many times at Goodwood, and won his very last race here, in 2002, just months before he sadly succumbed to cancer aged just 52. The Revival’s bike race was renamed in his honour the following year. I am delighted that we will be celebrating his unique life across our three events in 2026, on the 50th anniversary of his first world championship. Bringing together the bikes that shaped his career, and welcoming his family and friends, will be a fitting tribute to a man who inspired so many.”
Words: Phil West
Images: Suzuki
