Thirty years ago Kevin Schwantz secured his one and only world championship. The fast but oft-floored American won 25 grands prix, so he should’ve won more titles, but he raced at a special time, when 500cc GP bikes were evil and you had to go through Wayne Rainey, Mick Doohan, Eddie Lawson and Wayne Gardner, et al, if you wanted to get anywhere.
One of motorcycle racing’s most naturally talented exponents, Schwantz spent his entire GP career with Suzuki and the man that signed him was Garry Taylor, who worked with the British-based factory team from the late 1970s when Barry Sheene was in his pomp, all the way through to the new four-stroke MotoGP era.
Taylor still can’t believe he was lucky enough to work with one of the sport’s all-time greats, who wasn’t only crazy-fast but also hugely popular. Fans adored Schwantz for his never-say-die attitude – he crashed a lot and got a lot hurt a lot and seemed almost superhuman in his ability to bounce back from injury.
“Kevin was a team manager’s dream,” says Taylor, now 74, who became Suzuki team manager in late 1987. “It was a wild ride and an unbelievable privilege to work with him. His whole crew would have died for him. I still would! Everyone involved with Kevin owes him a debt
