Phil Read MBE - in his own words

[@pj2524]

Condolences to Phil and RIP Wendy

[@SteveInskip]

I saw him in the early ‘70’s on the MV and he was awesome. Very quick, very smooth and at the top of his game. A joy to watch.

[@alistairbernard9574]

Great video. Phil is a Superb Rider but an underrated British Champion. He is One of my favourites specialy for beating Ago in the 73 and 74 seasons on the MV. 👍

[@SteveInskip]

And ‘75 I seem to remember. Ago won the title on less overall points than Phil but I think it was the best 6 results that counted...or something like that.

[@bebopreview3187]

@@SteveInskip That was a very exciting season. Phil had lost his team mate Franco Bonera to injury and the MV was totally outclassed on handling by the Italian's Yamaha. However. he held off Agostini until the very last race with some really scary on the limit riding - and as you point out, scored more points but lost on the best of six. That rule was dropped a few years later when Barry Sheen won the title early in 1976 with only six starts and retired from the rest of the season.

[@pabloperez4063]

I never Saw those races...but I Guess Read was faster than Ago in 73-74-75

[@mrlittlemouse1]

@@pabloperez4063 he was faster full stop

[@robertsmith9076]

Spoke to Phil on the boat leaving the 1963 Iom. Johnny Hartle was sat in Phils Jag. I reminded him of that at Cadwell 5 years ago . His comment was bloody hell that long ago. Top man .

[@forddriver8827]

RIP Phil. You were the greatest British rider for mine.

[@bluespig1]

Thanks to all involved in bringing these wonderful characters to Brooklands & special thanks to the folks who loaded this on youtube. Sydney, Australia.

[@davemonday5381]

I’ve met Phil twice first time was at my first TT I was only 12 To meet him was fantastic. A lot of TT’s later , and again at the dinner after the parade lap 2005. Had a very good night. At the end of the night there was about 12 motorcycles legends. Sat around a table bit worse for ware all calling each other in the nicest possible way and all old friends. That’s for a great night Mike. That was a good day. And one of my best TT memories.

[@ianstewart6668]

Do you know what, this was a fantastic watch. Awesome career performance PR ❤

[@MrSmiththy]

Remember reading article about him in Speed and Power magazine from 1970's interesting man great rider. rip Phil.

[@splodge57]

Thoroughly enjoyed that. He had a wonderful racing career, well done and thank you Phil. 💨

[@pwilliamsp4110]

Phillip William READ. One of UK'S finest Grand Prix riders.. From very early works Yamaha days..to the Glorius MV Agusta days.. Very controversial off the track...but on the bike he answered his critics. Sadly..past away 1 year ago..

[@ianw3294]

Great interview. Phil was a fierce competitor in an era of great riders. A lot wouldnt risk the Isle Of Man and still don't. I'll never forget the sound of Ago's MV at Laverton in Victoria. Unfortunately Phil is pretty crook at the moment. I wish him well.

[@melwatkins6121]

Sorry to hear Phil is not so good. I wish him well. I was his bank manager for five years and got to know him really well.He even let me use one of the 25 RC 30's he imported from Honda France with my help!.

[@sheeeene7]

Great racer very smooth. Only thing I don't agree with him was when he said Sheene had a faster bike. I watched him and Sheene many times racing in the UK, Read on the 500MV and Sheene on the 500 Suzuki twin and Sheene would get into the lead and on the last lap Read would breeze by just before the flag. This only changed when Sheene got the Square four RG500.

[@robjohnson7806]

RIP Fella. Thanks for the memories, as well as the beer with Bazza and Granty. Oh the memories.

[@simonbertioli4696]

Always found him to be my favourite... Brilliant rider...a quiet but pushy in rider style. Even today, he is a character..slightly older than myself...but l would have given him a ride racing together....🙄🤔if only😉👍

[@Yosemite-George-61]

I've met him in France (Nantes) in 2015... posed for a pic with my girlfriend and I, a true and fun gentlemen, my favourite race driver ever..

[@ThePoshPleb]

It's 'my girlfriend and me' not 'my girlfriend and I'.

[@pabloperez4063]

@@ThePoshPleb now, Jorge can try THE C1

[@cigarboxpickandslide2979]

I belonged to the Triumph owners club in the 70s ,and we all attended a race meeting I think are Mallory park . It was a time when two strokes and high revving Japanese bikes were becoming dominant. Phil was riding a Ducati . We hated two strokes and every time Phil came past we’d all cheer ,hearing the thunderous roar of the Duke over the winging two strokes and he won! After the race his response was “sorts out the men from the boys” happy days.

[@petercook2823]

Brilliant ❤

[@mrswinkyuk]

Fantastic interview, thank you.

[@MrPomdownunder]

RIP Phil .. A true legend..

[@eslermanu47]

Great champion met him many times but Hailwood was number 1

[@caribman10]

SMBH was the rider of his era, but he had the advantage of having first class equipment every time. Read, Pasolini, Agostini, Caldarella, the Japanese factory riders and many others did not have that, not to take anything away from SMBH.

[@mickwilkinson87]

Rip phil and thank you for everything

[@cyrilthompson1846]

I have Ulster GP memories of Read and Ivy circulating on the 125 4s I don't know how many gears they had but it was music. If you don't know Dundrod you can hear the bikes for a good bit of the course. A very long lasting memory.

[@routmaster38]

A long time ago I was stranded at the Highlander on the wrong side of the road afer a TT race with a hired mini car in the opposite car park and had to walk against the circuit on a disused rail track to Crosby to phone a taxi after a police man allowed us to cross over and while in the red phone box PhilRead flashed past seemingly inches away.I lost my deposit on the abandoned mini!

[@Jokerlap2]

R.I.P Phil Read

[@nickloughrey9841]

1967 leathamstown corner ............a legend !...total respect

[@g7usl]

The person I felt sorry for was Madeline, whom I met when I drove over to meet Phil, but he decided to break our meeting and left Madeline to deal with me. She was a charming lady and sold me the Premier helmet, I bought when they had just started. Madeline trained Phil how to run a business, and apologised profusely for the broken meeting. The final insult came when he cheated Bill Ivy, after them both agreeing to win the 125, for Bill and the 250 for Phil's championships.

[@DL-ls5sy]

and Länsivuori too (Imatra, 1973, 350 cc race)

[@caribman10]

Racing riders ride to win and asking them to do otherwise is stupid. No real racer pre-agrees to finish second.

[@MBIKES21]

A fantastic rider, great bloke.

[@HerfingPug]

Legend❤️

[@pabloperez4063]

The first Pic is amazing... Is there footage of 74-75 500cc when the fight 2 strokes and 4 strokes took place? As I was too young to live that age (which I guess was EPIC,) how much I would give to see something of it on YT...

[@tonebonetones]

Lol, gotta love how he just waltzes in, starts talking and is revealed instantly as someone who likes the sound of his own voice, probably wondering what the receptionist is doing sitting down beside him! At 2:22 in, her face is a treat, as she is clearly wondering when the old windbag is going to let her get a word in lolol. Great rider. But..... boy...those Phil Read replica helmets I got in 1980 were total s**t, badly fitting with next to zero padding, and frankly dangerous. A friend had an AGV 'Ago' from the same time, and the difference in comfort, quality and protection was night and day.

[@caribman10]

Sorry toebonetones didn't like the subject of the interview talking about himself, which was the idea in the first place. Even sorrier that toebonetones didn't like the Premier helmets, which I wore for 5 years and really liked and which also saved a fellow riders' life. As for Read being a windbag, gee, wonder who had the more interesting life?

[@BrooklandsMemberstv]

Thanks Ford Driver. We work hard to please you all and love what we do.

[@peterwhitwell2319]

Thanks Phil, great to hear about your racing career --would like to buy A Race of Champions recording any available ?

[@richardpope3063]

'the good old times'

[@robertoplanamente7858]

Una volta mi a passato all'interno. Aveva fretta quel giono.

[@DL-ls5sy]

Très grand champion ! respect !

[@peter3471]

The photo at 9.38, the Junior TTT win ,features Barry Sheene (wearing cap) Margaret Sheene just behind him, and Frank Sheene between Phil, and his mum .Another photo was of Margaret giving Phil a congratulatory kiss, and was wrongly identified by the Daily Mirror as Phil's fiance, to the annoyance of his actual fiance. The Mirror made a hasty apology with the headline,'' the kiss that caused a rumpus ''I actually bumped in to Margaret in Holborn a short time later, and both had a laugh about the incident.

[@jamessharp9790]

Legend!

[@tooyoungtobeold8756]

I saw Phil Read so many times. I really liked his racing style. Great rider but he did stitch up Bill Ivy for the 125 championships in the 60s. Sad to see how people (all people) age so much.

[@rodneybrand7512]

Glad I am not the only one who remembers what an Ahole Read was

[@frantrictantric]

Yes spot on, and Ivy pissed all over him.

[@caliom8427]

@@frantrictantric If he had, Ivy would have won the championships.

[@DL-ls5sy]

a great champion but I don't like what he made to Teppi Länsivuori at Imatra (Finland) in 1973 during the 350 cc race. and with Bill Ivy, he was unfair too

[@Rollie961]

RIP Phil

[@parcidiooliveira9943]

Um dos grande campeões de motociclismo mundial. O desporto mais belo do mundo! Um abraço.

[@caribman10]

At 38;34 am I correct that Speedy has the front wheel off the ground in a corner?

[@tonycondren2647]

An absolute legend I’ll buy u a pint on the other side ❤❤❤❤

[@rodsdmba1571]

Don Emde won Daytona on a 350 Yamaha. BSA/Triumph had been running the 750 triples for a few years but in 72 both Suzuki and Kawasaki came with 750cc triple 2 smokers. Suzuki went 1-2-3 in qualifying but they all went wonky. It appeared the win would go to 500cc Suzuki rider New Zealander Geoff Perry but with a lap to go the chain broke (and it turns out that he may have also been a lap behind). Total kerfuffle!

[@caribman10]

If JPN had better/faster refueling (and perhaps twin discs in front?) they could have won that race with Read.

[@alanburton2689]

Phil great guy but never really recognised like other British riders who have not won has much as phil has that’s a shame

[@hermanhandlebars2687]

Not everyone liked him chap. Unsportsmanlike amongst other things were tagged on him

[@Team-fabulous]

@@hermanhandlebars2687 unsportsman like behaviour wasn't tagged on him. It was a fact...

[@DL-ls5sy]

@@hermanhandlebars2687 Bill Ivy, Teppi Länsivuori

[@nickhodgson8631]

Phil was a good rider i met him but....... He always pulled Hailwood down for his success being his dads money when nothing could be further from the truth. At one meeting at Brands Hailwood was so fed up he asked a chap on a clubmans bike if he would swap and still won the race. Read on the other hand let Ivy down when riding to orders Ivy slowed to let Phil win the tt. Im sorry Phil you were a good rider but my respect for Hailwood and for Ivy was greater than for you. Did yamaha ever forgive you i donot know. I saw Hailwood catch Read up at the bungalow in the 78 TT and Mallory just after he walked all over everybody Hailwood at the time was untouchable the greatest The last time i saw Hailwood was at Donnington when he was going to race Sheene fell of and broke his collarbone i was next to him blood pouring out of my head after the staff had dropped me of the stretcher. He said you look s.... Rest in peace Phil nobody can take away your ability you gave us lots of pleasure. Your best race was Brands the first time you said you were going to retire you did good and made us all smile.

[@alecjefferson6993]

Did not say much about his team mate BILL IVY WONDER WHY.

[@Team-fabulous]

He robbed Bill of a championship as you know. Reid is a disgraceful human being....

[@pabloperez4063]

@@Team-fabulous are not you too hard on him??

[@ronniedarragh6579]

P REID WAS A GREAT RIDER DID NO GET THE RIDES HE SHOULD HAVE GOT CAUSE HE COULD NOT SHUT HIS MOUTHE

[@pd1648]

A strange personality - odd relationship with Bill ivy

[@n00n1n]

🐕‍🦺

[@frederickbowdler8169]

Not really a job riding round in circles all your life 😅😊

[@MichaelGreen-vn7dr]

Phil Read... Sorry mate, we'll miss ya. But now you can go hang out with your mates and Rivals! Hi to Geoff Duke for me, and Dad

[@markholroyde9412]

R.I.P Fella, you and your "ilk" were the real racers, not like the trash today.