"First 6 months on that 500 was pretty damn hard!" Mick Doohan on his insane intro to road racing!

[@peteo3436]

I remember when Mick got it together on the 500. Suddenly he went from struggling for a podium to a whole string of dominant wins. Legend.

[@maskedmotorsdiy3575]

I once talked with a then-president of HRC who had been involved in the hiring process searching for a new Rothmans Honda rider for 1989. He was adamant they should hire young Mick Doohan but some people in HRC wanted to hire a different Aussie racer named Michael Dowson. The HRC guy said something like "I wanted Doohan because he visually looked like he was going slower til you checked the laptimes and learned he was actually going faster than everyone else." Seems like the guy made the right call pushing to hire Doohan! On a side note, not many people are aware Doohan won *three* World Superbike races during the 1988 season as a wildcard rider. Yes, Honda...hire this guy for 500GP in 1989! You won't regret it.

[@darrenjpeters]

Dowson was no slouch, either. But Doohan clearly had something special going on, right from his first 250 proddie races.

[@kelliebrooks9094]

Being a honda dirtbike rider i went road racing really fell in love with traction those rothman nsr 500 were the best looking bike i really like the paint scheme an Doohan had something about his style that interesting when i started in 1987 the last race of the year i think Doug Toland Of cycle world endurance team was the style i copyed the more convential full hang off mick doohan stay pretty tite to the seat which gave u more down bite on the tires the more u hangvoff the more it pendulam swings against the tires out from under u the harder u in essence wear the tires....the more u sit straight down on then the less they slide an wear...but its not as easy to save a high side slip....ur more easy to get thrown if u dont counter it fast....

[@m.b8257]

Very interesting man, I could listen to stories all day.

[@elitelawn9547]

Legend! My all time favorite rider.

[@michaeltaylor8835]

King of the 500s

[@CroydonTramp]

This bloke was my hero. Had the lid a fireblade in the colours. What a brilliant guy .

[@mosca3289]

Those wildcard super-bike performances were pretty amazing.

[@kelliebrooks9094]

Gypsy thanks for posting these short bits im a MX SX RR ENDURO harescrams...vert half pipe skater i got hyperactive jeans an to sit thru a 1 hour is hard lately its been tougher to sit for 30minutes let alone 3 hours thanks anyway...

[@88Heckenlively]

Great haircut.

[@MichaelMourginos]

Having met Michael Doohan at a Toy Run in Brisbane I will say the way he is here is the same as real life ,no camera BS.

[@colinlyders]

I was at Oran Park when Mick won those 2 WSBK races - it was pretty amazing to watch. I was also at Winton prior to that for what (I think) was his first ride on a MYDT FZR750. IIRC Dowson won the first race & Mick won the 2nd. A mate was also racing & Mick actually ran him off the track at one point. I remember standing next to Mick at the food cart & thinking he was a bit of a dick for doing that - but it didn't stop me becoming a huge fan & following his racing career from start to finish.

[@garrycoates2147]

Hi Colin, I race marshalled at Winton for that meeting. Saw a young MD drift the front of the yam sbk under brakes coming up to the water tower. He would hold it up with his knee. I had just spent 3 years following grand prixes in europe so I knew I was watching something pretty special.

[@botiduran344]

On The Unrideables, Lawson explain how Doohan was struggling to ride the Nsr500but he said was very sure Mick's gonna be good at the end.

[@mitchiegxxr350]

The unrideables? A documentary?

[@botiduran344]

@@mitchiegxxr350 yes, is what it is... you don't think so?

[@mitchiegxxr350]

@@botiduran344 no, really asking. Where can i find it?

[@botiduran344]

@@mitchiegxxr350 ahhh sorry 😅. The unrideables is a documental divided in two parts, made by Bbc, and show the evolution of 500cc from early 80's to the 90's. Have interviews with Lawson, Roberts, Rainey, Schwantz, McElnea... and they speak freely about the period and reveal lots of information never mentioned before. Very very interesting. I buyed trough Ebay and im pretty sure you can still buy it easily. Good luck!

[@mitchiegxxr350]

@@botiduran344 thank you!

[@iblacka1]

Wow never knew that.

[@blip98]

We all love cheap track time Surfer's Paradise might be gone, Darwin's Hidden Valley is probably keeping that tradition these days!

[@Tonyclifton-q4f]

Remember walking into a bike dealership as a 22 year old ,BTX in Boronia and they had a demo RG500 Gamma,i was lookin at a GPZ900 as a mate at work just bought one and i loved it,the salesman workin the floor offered me the Suzuki for a test ride as i said i wanted a quick light sports bike ,i laughed in hes face and said i didnt want a Suzuki with a lawnmower motor that you had to kick start ,should of taken him up on that demo ride

[@darrenjpeters]

I used to own an RG500 Gamma. Sexy, sexy bike. You really missed out there, mate.

[@danfromnewwie]

Oh man.My older brother had one.Talk about a rocket.3rd gear at 7 grand on the tacho,light her up and hang on for dear life!! Holy shit they flew.GP bike for the road.Those were the days.

[@Tonyclifton-q4f]

@@darrenjpeters yeah i know,i never ever knew 2 strokes went so quick

[@darrenjpeters]

@@Tonyclifton-q4f I went in to buy a GSX-R 750, test rode one, and when I got back, the guy said, look, you really should take this for a spin as well. Went home with the RG.

[@davidteller7681]

If you're looking for the 500 comment, it's the end of the vid 😕

[@Showmetheevidence-]

You should get Johnny Rea on here.

[@Team-fabulous]

Mick was a fantastic racer but please stop calling him a MotoGP world champion. Mick never rode in MotoGP, he raced in 500GP. It takes someone special to win a 500GP. These days riders coming from moto 3 can become competitive in MotoGP within a season... Two very different era's and categories...

[@jkim6200]

Thank you and well put.

[@martinlewis967]

When racing was properly brave

[@Team-fabulous]

@@martinlewis967 agreed

[@sugarnads]

Exactly

[@kelliebrooks9094]

Did mick give honda an the NSR 500 credit forcthat beautifull head of doctor hair...he has...i was thinking he mite be a couple years older...or i mite be 5 year older i go look....google it

[@cbaxtermusic]

his pepsi thou.....

[@smee8721]

Making changes as a chairperson of sports he’s involved in to make it easier for his son to be competitive. Pos

[@cletendre9368]

Ahy mate