Giacomo Agostini 1967 he battled Hailwood in one of the most dramatic seasons in Grand Prix history. Each rider had 5 victories before the championship was decided in Agostini's favor at the last race of the season. Agostini dropped a bombshell on the Grand Prix world when he announced he would never again race at the Isle of Man TT, after the death of his close friend, Gilberto Parlotti during the 1972 TT. He considered the 37 mile circuit unsafe for world championship competition. At the time, the TT was the most prestigious race on the motorcycling calendar. Other top riders joined
Dave Simmonds world championship with one win at the German Grand Prix at the Hockenheimring. In 1971, he competed in the premier 500cc class with a Kawasaki H1R. He proved to be competitive by finishing second to Giacomo Agostini and the dominant MV Agusta at the Finnish Grand Prix and had third places in Holland and Italy. Simmonds won his first 500cc class victory at the season ending Spanish Grand Prix at Jarama when Agostini sat out the race after already winning the championship. In 1972, seven years after first his first appearance on the 125cc Kawasaki, Simmonds would race the bike