Ralf Waldmann
Ralf Waldmann (14 July 1966 – 10 March 2018) was a German Grand Prix motorcycle road racer.
Ralf Waldmann | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Nationality | German | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Hagen, West Germany | July 14, 1966||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Died | March 10, 2018 51) Ennepetal, Germany | (aged||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Motorcycle racing career
In 1996, Waldmann finished second to Max Biaggi in the 250cc world championship.[1][2] In the 1997 season, he gave Biaggi a strong challenge, winning four races and finishing only two points behind the Italian.[1][2] Kenny Roberts offered him a job for the 1998 season on a 500cc Modenas but the competition was too strong and he finished in 14th place.[1][2] He returned to the 250 class the following year riding for the Aprilia team and retired from motorcycle competition after the 2002 season. Waldmann came out of semi-retirement in 2003 and signed with the new Harris WCM MotoGP team, but quit before the year began after failing to adapt to the new four-stroke Grand Prix bikes.[1][2]
His final win at the British Grand Prix in 2000 is of particular note. On a drying track, he came from nearly a whole lap down to win at the final corner at the notoriously slippery Donington Park circuit.[3]
In 2009, he joined Martin Wimmer in buying out the motorbike manufacturing company MZ, from the Hong Leong Group.[4] He also had a brief return to Grand Prix motorcycle racing, substituting for the injured rider Vladimir Leonov at the British Grand Prix.
Death
Waldmann died on 10 March 2018 in Ennepetal, Germany of a suspected heart attack at the age of 51.[5]
Career statistics
Grand Prix motorcycle racing
By class
Class | Season | 1st GP | 1st Pod | 1st Win | Race | Win | Podiums | Pole | FLap | Pts | WChmp |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
80cc | 1986–1989 | 1986 Baden-Württemberg | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | ||
125cc | 1988–1993 | 1989 Great Britain | 1991 Germany | 1991 Germany | 55 | 6 | 15 | 2 | 6 | 432 | 0 |
250cc | 1994–1997, 1999–2000, 2002, 2009 | 1994 Australia | 1994 Italy | 1994 Italy | 90 | 14 | 35 | 8 | 10 | 1166 | 0 |
500cc | 1998 | 1998 Japan | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 46 | 0 | ||
Total | 1986–2000, 2002, 2009 | 169 | 20 | 50 | 10 | 16 | 1668 | 0 |
Races by year
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Year | Class | Bike | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Pos. | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1986 | 80cc | Krauser | SPA | NAT | GER | AUT | YUG | NED | GBR | RSM | BWU 19 |
NC | 0 | |||||||
1987 | 80cc | ERK | SPA | GER 10 |
NAT | AUT 12 |
YUG | NED 19 |
GBR | CZE Ret |
RSM | POR | 25th | 1 | ||||||
1988 | 80cc | Seel | SPA | EXP | NAT | GER 17 |
NED | YUG | CZE | NC | 0 | |||||||||
125cc | Rotax | SPA | NAT | GER DNQ |
AUT | NED | BEL | YUG | FRA | GBR | SWE | CZE | NC | 0 | ||||||
1989 | 80cc | Seel | SPA 8 |
NAT 14 |
GER 7 |
YUG Ret |
NED 12 |
CZE 19 |
14th | 23 | ||||||||||
125cc | Seel | JPN | AUS | SPA DNQ |
NAT | GER DNQ |
AUT | NED | BEL DNQ |
FRA | GBR Ret |
SWE 19 |
CZE Ret |
NC | 0 | |||||
1990 | 125cc | JJ Cobas | JPN | SPA Ret |
NAT 25 |
GER 11 |
AUT 16 |
YUG 4 |
NED Ret |
BEL Ret |
FRA Ret |
GBR 15 |
SWE 23 |
CZE Ret |
HUN Ret |
AUS Ret |
23rd | 19 | ||
1991 | 125cc | Honda | JPN 7 |
AUS 5 |
SPA 7 |
ITA 9 |
GER 1 |
AUT 2 |
EUR 6 |
NED 1 |
FRA 2 |
GBR Ret |
RSM 4 |
CZE 8 |
MAL | 3rd | 141 | |||
1992 | 125cc | Honda | JPN 1 |
AUS 1 |
MAL 3 |
SPA 1 |
ITA Ret |
EUR 12 |
GER 3 |
NED 9 |
HUN 2 |
FRA 10 |
GBR 7 |
BRA 15 |
RSA 6 |
3rd | 112 | |||
1993 | 125cc | Aprilia | AUS Ret |
MAL 5 |
JPN 6 |
SPA 2 |
AUT 9 |
GER 5 |
NED Ret |
EUR 2 |
RSM 4 |
GBR 3 |
CZE Ret |
ITA 5 |
USA 3 |
FIM 1 |
4th | 160 | ||
1994 | 250cc | Honda | AUS 7 |
MAL 6 |
JPN Ret |
SPA 4 |
AUT 5 |
GER 6 |
NED 4 |
ITA 1 |
FRA 4 |
GBR 7 |
CZE 2 |
USA 10 |
ARG 8 |
EUR 7 |
5th | 156 | ||
1995 | 250cc | Honda | AUS 1 |
MAL 4 |
JPN 1 |
SPA 5 |
GER Ret |
ITA 4 |
NED 2 |
FRA 1 |
GBR 3 |
CZE 3 |
BRA 4 |
ARG 6 |
EUR 3 |
3rd | 203 | |||
1996 | 250cc | Honda | MAL DNS |
INA 3 |
JPN 8 |
SPA 3 |
ITA 3 |
FRA 2 |
NED 1 |
GER 1 |
GBR 2 |
AUT 1 |
CZE 3 |
IMO 1 |
CAT 3 |
BRA 2 |
AUS 2 |
2nd | 268 | |
1997 | 250cc | Honda | MAL 4 |
JPN 5 |
SPA 1 |
ITA 4 |
AUT 2 |
FRA 3 |
NED 2 |
IMO 4 |
GER 3 |
BRA 12 |
GBR 1 |
CZE 4 |
CAT 1 |
INA 7 |
AUS 1 |
2nd | 248 | |
1998 | 500cc | Modenas | JPN Ret |
MAL 9 |
SPA 10 |
ITA 11 |
FRA 12 |
MAD 10 |
NED DNS |
GBR | GER 7 |
CZE 13 |
IMO 15 |
CAT 12 |
AUS Ret |
ARG 15 |
14th | 46 | ||
1999 | 250cc | Aprilia | MAL DNS |
JPN | SPA 6 |
FRA 4 |
ITA 2 |
CAT Ret |
NED 6 |
GBR 8 |
GER 3 |
CZE 2 |
IMO 7 |
VAL Ret |
AUS 5 |
RSA Ret |
BRA 7 |
ARG 11 |
6th | 131 |
2000 | 250cc | Aprilia | RSA 7 |
MAL 4 |
JPN Ret |
SPA 1 |
FRA 8 |
ITA Ret |
CAT 7 |
NED 24 |
GBR 1 |
GER 8 |
CZE 5 |
POR Ret |
VAL 13 |
BRA 6 |
PAC 7 |
AUS 4 |
7th | 143 |
2002 | 250cc | Aprilia | JPN | RSA | SPA | FRA | ITA | CAT | NED 11 |
GBR | GER 9 |
CZE 11 |
POR | BRA | PAC | MAL | AUS | VAL | 19th | 17 |
2009 | 250cc | Aprilia | QAT | JPN | SPA | FRA | ITA | CAT | NED | GER | GBR Ret |
CZE | IND | SMR | POR | AUS | MAL | VAL | NC | 0 |
Source:[1] |
Superbike World Championship
Races by year
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Year | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Pos. | Pts | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | ||||
2005 | Honda | QAT | QAT | AUS | AUS | SPA | SPA | ITA | ITA | EUR | EUR | SMR | SMR | CZE | CZE | GBR | GBR | NED | NED | GER Ret |
GER DNS |
ITA | ITA | FRA | FRA | NC | 0 |