customhouseregular Posted January 3, 2015 Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 Who was the best ever World Champion and how do we measure or compare?. Do we base it on titles won and if so it has to be Mauger or Rickardsson. Or do we look at Finals competed, WC points scored or podiums. I believe we should look at a World Champion's complete career, accepting that for some their careers were not that long...Craven for a tragic reason and Penhall for early retirement for example. Based on World titles won, Finals competed, points scored, podium places, domestic and international competition, BLRC and British Finals etc., there is a clear winner for me. Should anyone be in any doubt to whom I am referring. BLRC is the clue. Should you wish to base the answer solely on WC victories then who was better? 6 wins...Mauger or Rikardsson 4 wins...Briggs or Nielsen 3 wins ...Pedersen, Gundersen or Olsen 2 wins...too many to mention. If I have forgotten anybody my apologies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waiheke1 Posted January 3, 2015 Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 Mauger ((6) briggs (4) olsen (3) Moore (2) peter collins (1) Best of all time, I'd agree its a kiwi, but go with a different one to you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The White Knight Posted January 3, 2015 Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 I would probably have to say Ivan Mauger, to answer the question as best, and as honestly, I can. However, my favourite World Champion would definitely be 'Briggo'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
customhouseregular Posted January 3, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 Mauger made it all look too easy but Briggs was a battler. As good as Mauger was I never enjoyed watching him but Briggs was always a joy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Split Posted January 3, 2015 Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 Yes, Customhouseregular you have forgotten somebody. Ove Fundin won the world title five times! Your apologies are accepted. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
customhouseregular Posted January 3, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 I would never forget the Fox...I saw him win his 5th. title. I did not include him as I was comparing like for like. As I did not have another 5-time winner I could link anyone up with Ove. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Split Posted January 3, 2015 Report Share Posted January 3, 2015 (edited) @Customhouseregular but with your name I assume that your favourite ex-World Champion must be Björn Knutson as was mine. It's such a shame he retired so early as he would surely have gone on to win the title again and again. His name was always written with a double S but this was apparently incorrect. Edited January 3, 2015 by Split 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Midland Red Posted January 5, 2015 Report Share Posted January 5, 2015 I have to confess that, as time goes by and threads like this appear, I am reconsidering my previous lists At the moment, I would probably go 1 Nielsen 2 Mauger 3 Fundin 4 Rickardsson 5 Penhall 6 Briggs 7 Gundersen 8 Craven 9 Lee 10 Knutsson They are 10 I saw at their peak, so I cannot quite include Moore Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
customhouseregular Posted January 5, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 5, 2015 @Customhouseregular but with your name I assume that your favourite ex-World Champion must be Björn Knutson as was mine. It's such a shame he retired so early as he would surely have gone on to win the title again and again. His name was always written with a double S but this was apparently incorrect. Bjorn was my favourite being an "Ammer" but he was not the best. As much as I loved him he was not "Briggo". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norbold Posted January 5, 2015 Report Share Posted January 5, 2015 CHR, do you remember the match race between Briggo and Bjorn at Custom House towards the end of the 1964 season? It was held to settle a difference of opinion as to the best way round the track. Bjorn always maintained it was the white line; Briggo, the outside. So they lined up with Bjorn in 1 and Briggo in 4. As the tapes went up they promptly crossed over and Bjorn rode the outside, while Briggo took the inside line. If memory serves me right, I believe Bjorn proved Briggo right by winning! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WembleyLion Posted January 5, 2015 Report Share Posted January 5, 2015 Three titles for Greg Hancock and the fact he has ridden at the highest level for so long should not be overlooked! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waiheke1 Posted January 6, 2015 Report Share Posted January 6, 2015 Think greg would be ranked by most behind riders like olsen craven moore who won same/lower number of titles, and also possibly others such as gundersen penhall and collins. pedersen or hancock higher in the all time greatness stakes? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
customhouseregular Posted January 6, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 6, 2015 CHR, do you remember the match race between Briggo and Bjorn at Custom House towards the end of the 1964 season? It was held to settle a difference of opinion as to the best way round the track. Bjorn always maintained it was the white line; Briggo, the outside. So they lined up with Bjorn in 1 and Briggo in 4. As the tapes went up they promptly crossed over and Bjorn rode the outside, while Briggo took the inside line. If memory serves me right, I believe Bjorn proved Briggo right by winning! I'd love to say I remember it well but in truth the memory has faded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 21, 2015 Report Share Posted January 21, 2015 My greatest ever world champion would be Ove Fundin, then Jack Milne and 'Bluey' Wilkinson close behind the Swedish super star. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sommelier Posted January 24, 2015 Report Share Posted January 24, 2015 This is a hard one but in my era I would have to say Mauger for his professionalism and made it look oh so easy and could ride any type of track. But my favorite I would have to say was Olsen from the early seventies he was breath taking at times and for such a tall guy he was so stylist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grachan Posted January 26, 2015 Report Share Posted January 26, 2015 (edited) Best World Champion ever would, to me, mean which rider was the best rider in a particular year that he won the title against other riders in a particular year. For example, how does Ivan Mauger 1979 fare against Ivan Mauger 1968 or Tony Rickardsson 2001 and so on. And the winner is...... Hans Nielsen 1986. Edited January 26, 2015 by grachan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gavan Posted January 26, 2015 Report Share Posted January 26, 2015 The best World Champion i have seenin my lifetime would be a draw between Tony and Hans, both won the one off and both won gp series. In terms of bias my uncle used to sponsor a 15 year old Mark Loram and we knew the family very well and Mark even made the effort to come to my auntys funeral in Feb 2000. Such a shame she never saw her 'Marky Boy' lift the crown So in that respect to follow a young man from mascot to World Champion is quite special 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sommelier Posted January 26, 2015 Report Share Posted January 26, 2015 The best World Champion i have seenin my lifetime would be a draw between Tony and Hans, both won the one off and both won gp series. In terms of bias my uncle used to sponsor a 15 year old Mark Loram and we knew the family very well and Mark even made the effort to come to my auntys funeral in Feb 2000. Such a shame she never saw her 'Marky Boy' lift the crown So in that respect to follow a young man from mascot to World Champion is quite special Yes, Mark was such a fine exciting rider Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norbold Posted January 26, 2015 Report Share Posted January 26, 2015 And the winner is...... Hans Nielsen 1986. Why? How about Ove Fundin 1960? Or Peter Craven 1962? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
customhouseregular Posted January 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2015 Why? How about Ove Fundin 1960? Or Peter Craven 1962? I'm not sure I follow grachan's reasoning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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