Biography
Originally from the Gold Coast, near Brisbane, Doohan raced in Australian Superbikes in the late 80s, and also won both races as Superbike World Championship visited Oran Park in 1988. He is one of the few 500 cc or MotoGP World Champions to have won a Superbike World Championship race . Attended St. Joseph's College Gregory Terrace.
He made his Grand Prix debut for Honda on a 500cc two-stroke motorcycle in 1989. In 1991, he was paired with Wayne Gardner on a Honda RVF750 superbike and won the Suzuka 8 Hours endurance race. Doohan competed successfully throughout the early 1990s and appeared to be on his way to winning his first world championship when he was seriously injured in a practice crash before the 1992 Dutch TT. He suffered permanent serious damage to his right leg due to medical complications and, at one stage, risked amputation of the leg. At the time, Doohan was 65 points in the lead of the championship, but could not compete for eight weeks after the crash. After an arduous recovery, Doohan returned to racing for the final two races but could not prevent Yamaha rider Wayne Rainey from winning his third consecutive title.
Throughout 1993 he struggled to regain fitness and the ability to race the Honda at elite level. However, in 1994 he won his first 500 cc World Championship. From then until 1998 he dominated the class, winning five consecutive 500 cc World Championships. In 1997, his most successful year, Doohan won 12 out of 15 races, finished second in another two, and crashed out of the final race of the season at his home GP while leading by more than six seconds.
In June 1996 Doohan was inducted as a Member of the Order of Australia for his contribution to the sport of motor racing.
Despite up to eight rivals on almost identical Honda motorcycles Doohan's margin of superiority over them was such that in many races Doohan would build a comfortable lead and then ride well within his limits to cruise to victory. Although pure riding skill clearly played a large part in his success, his ability to perfect the suspension and geometry of a racing motorcycle gave him an enormous advantage over his rivals, even though other Honda riders (particularly Doohan's teammates) benefited somewhat from his ability to perfect the bike's handling. It is generally accepted that his development of the Honda throughout the 1990s helped the company to dominate racing for many years. At the time of Doohan's retirement, the Honda had developed into a much better handling machine than it had ever been previously.
One notable trait of Doohan's post-crash riding style was the use of a hand-operated rear brake developed during 1993. This was operated by a "nudge" bar similar to a personal water craft throttle, but mounted on the left handlebar. Some commentators have argued that this technique offered Doohan an additional advantage in rear brake control, though there was nothing to stop other riders from trying it (and some did, most notably Troy Corser and Miguel DuHamel, neither of whom had restricted use of their right foot).
In 1999 Doohan had another accident, this time in qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix. He again broke his leg in several places and subsequently announced his retirement. He was somewhat unlucky, as his accident rate was far lower than many competitors. For all his time in 500 cc class his chief engineer was Jeremy Burgess, who after his retirement became Valentino Rossi's chief engineer. After his retirement, he worked as a roving adviser to Honda's Grand Prix race effort. At the conclusion of the 2004 season, Doohan and Honda parted company. Mick married his long term partner Selina Sines of 11 years on Friday 21 March 2006, on Hamilton Island. Mick and Selina have two children, Allexis and Jack. Many current generation MotoGP riders consider Mick as an inspiration, including 2007 MotoGP world champion, Casey Stoner.
Formula One
After his success in Grand Prix motorcycle racing he got a chance to test a Formula One racecar, the Williams FW19, at Circuit de Catalunya, Spain, in April 1998. Despite posting lap times similar to his 500 cc Grand Prix bike, he found the car difficult to drive and subsequently bent the car against a guard rail. He also crashed and totalled a Mercedes Benz AMG in Targa Tasmania.
Rollercoaster
Michael Doohan helped design, and was gifted his own rollercoaster at Dreamworld on the Gold Coast, Australia. This is the only known Intamin AG Motorbike Coaster, since others are made by Vekoma and Zamperla.
Grand Prix career statistics
Points system from 1988 to 1992
Position
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Points
20
17
15
13
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
Points system from 1993
Position
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Points
25
20
16
13
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Year
Class
Team
Machine
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
Points
Rank
Wins
1989
500cc
Rothmans Honda
NSR500
JPN
DNF
AUS
8
USA
8
ESP
DNF
NAT
DNF
GER
3
AUT
8
YUG
6
NED
9
BEL
8
FRA
8
GBR
-
SWE
-
CZE
-
BRA
4
81
9th
0
1990
500cc
Rothmans Honda
NSR500
JPN
NC
USA
2
ESP
4
NAT
3
GER
DNF
AUT
3
YUG
4
NED
4
BEL
6
FRA
4
GBR
4
SWE
4
CZE
9
HUN
1
AUS
2
179
3rd
1
1991
500cc
Rothmans Honda
NSR500
JPN
2
AUS
2
USA
2
ESP
1
ITA
1
GER
3
AUT
1
EUR
2
NED
DNF
FRA
2
GBR
3
RSM
3
CZE
2
VDM
2
MAL
3
224
2nd
3
1992
500cc
Rothmans Honda
NSR500
JPN
1
AUS
1
MAL
1
ESP
1
ITA
2
EUR
2
GER
1
NED
DNS
HUN
INJ
FRA
INJ
GBR
INJ
BRA
12
RSA
6
136
2nd
5
1993
500cc
Rothmans Honda
NSR500
AUS
DNF
MAL
4
JPN
7
ESP
4
AUT
2
GER
DNF
NED
2
EUR
2
RSM
1
GBR
DNF
CZE
3
ITA
2
USA
DNF
FIM
INJ
156
4th
1
1994
500cc
HRC Honda
NSR500
AUS
3
MAL
1
JPN
2
ESP
1
AUT
1
GER
1
NED
1
ITA
1
FRA
1
GBR
2
CZE
1
USA
3
ARG
1
EUR
2
317
1st
9
1995
500cc
Repsol Honda
NSR500
AUS
1
MAL
1
JPN
2
ESP
DNF
GER
DNF
ITA
1
NED
1
FRA
1
GBR
1
CZE
2
BRA
2
ARG
1
EUR
4
248
1st
7
1996
500cc
Repsol Honda
NSR500
MAL
5
INA
1
JPN
6
ESP
1
ITA
1
FRA
1
NED
1
GER
2
GBR
1
AUT
2
CZE
2
IMO
1
CAT
2
BRA
1
AUS
8
309
1st
8
1997
500cc
Repsol Honda
NSR500
MAL
1
JPN
1
ESP
2
ITA
1
AUT
1
FRA
1
NED
1
IMO
1
GER
1
BRA
1
GBR
1
CZE
1
CAT
1
INA
2
AUS
DNF
340
1st
12
1998
500cc
Repsol Honda
NSR500
JPN
DNF
MAL
1
ESP
2
ITA
1
FRA
2
MAD
DNF
NED
1
GBR
2
GER
1
CZE
DNF
IMO
1
CAT
1
AUS
1
ARG
1
260
1st
8
1999
500cc
Repsol Honda
NSR500
MAL
4
JPN
2
ESP
-
FRA
-
ITA
-
CAT
-
NED
-
GBR
-
GER
-
CZE
-
IMO
-
VAL
-
AUS
-
RSA
-
BRA
-
ARG
-
33
17th
0
References
^ Michael Doohan career World Superbike statistics at worldsbk.com
^ http://www.motogp.com/en/videos/2009/Behind+the+scenes+with+Casey+Stoner
^ "Teddy Yip's Feast from the East". FORIX.com. http://www.forix.com/8w/theodore.html. Retrieved 2007-03-13.
^ "Moody Blues: Barcelona". Crash.net. http://www.crash.net/feature_print~cid~6~id~7620.htm. Retrieved 2007-03-13.
^ "Rider Statistics - Michael Doohan". MotoGP.com. http://www.motogp.com/en/MotoGP+Legends/profiles/Mick+Doohan. Retrieved 2008-09-04.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Michael Doohan
MickDoohan.com.au - Official site
Preceded by
Kevin Schwantz
500 cc Motorcycle World Champion
1994-1998
Succeeded by
lex Crivill
v d e
500cc/MotoGP Motorcycle World Champions
1949 - L. Graham
1950 - U. Masetti
1951 - G. Duke
1952 - U. Masetti
1953 - G. Duke
1954 - G. Duke
1955 - G. Duke
1956 - J. Surtees
1957 - L. Liberati
1958 - J. Surtees
1959 - J. Surtees
1960 - J. Surtees
1961 - G. Hocking
1962 - M. Hailwood
1963 - M. Hailwood
1964 - M. Hailwood
1965 - M. Hailwood
1966 - G. Agostini
1967 - G. Agostini
1968 - G. Agostini
1969 - G. Agostini
1970 - G. Agostini
1971 - G. Agostini
1972 - G. Agostini
1973 - P. Read
1974 - P. Read
1975 - G. Agostini
1976 - B. Sheene
1977 - B. Sheene
1978 - K. Roberts
1979 - K. Roberts
1980 - K. Roberts
1981 - M. Lucchinelli
1982 - F. Uncini
1983 - F. Spencer
1984 - E. Lawson
1985 - F. Spencer
1986 - E. Lawson
1987 - W. Gardner
1988 - E. Lawson
1989 - E. Lawson
1990 - W. Rainey
1991 - W. Rainey
1992 - W. Rainey
1993 - K. Schwantz
1994 - M. Doohan
1995 - M. Doohan
1996 - M. Doohan
1997 - M. Doohan
1998 - M. Doohan
1999 - . Crivill
2000 - K. Roberts, Jr.
2001 - V. Rossi
2002 - V. Rossi
2003 - V. Rossi
2004 - V. Rossi
2005 - V. Rossi
2006 - N. Hayden
2007 - C. Stoner
2008 - V. Rossi
2009 - V. Rossi
Categories: Australian motorcycle racers | 500cc World Championship riders | Superbike World Championship riders | Motorcycle racers who have driven F1 cars | People from Brisbane | 1965 births | Living people
Originally from the Gold Coast, near Brisbane, Doohan raced in Australian Superbikes in the late 80s, and also won both races as Superbike World Championship visited Oran Park in 1988. He is one of the few 500 cc or MotoGP World Champions to have won a Superbike World Championship race . Attended St. Joseph's College Gregory Terrace.
He made his Grand Prix debut for Honda on a 500cc two-stroke motorcycle in 1989. In 1991, he was paired with Wayne Gardner on a Honda RVF750 superbike and won the Suzuka 8 Hours endurance race. Doohan competed successfully throughout the early 1990s and appeared to be on his way to winning his first world championship when he was seriously injured in a practice crash before the 1992 Dutch TT. He suffered permanent serious damage to his right leg due to medical complications and, at one stage, risked amputation of the leg. At the time, Doohan was 65 points in the lead of the championship, but could not compete for eight weeks after the crash. After an arduous recovery, Doohan returned to racing for the final two races but could not prevent Yamaha rider Wayne Rainey from winning his third consecutive title.
Throughout 1993 he struggled to regain fitness and the ability to race the Honda at elite level. However, in 1994 he won his first 500 cc World Championship. From then until 1998 he dominated the class, winning five consecutive 500 cc World Championships. In 1997, his most successful year, Doohan won 12 out of 15 races, finished second in another two, and crashed out of the final race of the season at his home GP while leading by more than six seconds.
In June 1996 Doohan was inducted as a Member of the Order of Australia for his contribution to the sport of motor racing.
Despite up to eight rivals on almost identical Honda motorcycles Doohan's margin of superiority over them was such that in many races Doohan would build a comfortable lead and then ride well within his limits to cruise to victory. Although pure riding skill clearly played a large part in his success, his ability to perfect the suspension and geometry of a racing motorcycle gave him an enormous advantage over his rivals, even though other Honda riders (particularly Doohan's teammates) benefited somewhat from his ability to perfect the bike's handling. It is generally accepted that his development of the Honda throughout the 1990s helped the company to dominate racing for many years. At the time of Doohan's retirement, the Honda had developed into a much better handling machine than it had ever been previously.
One notable trait of Doohan's post-crash riding style was the use of a hand-operated rear brake developed during 1993. This was operated by a "nudge" bar similar to a personal water craft throttle, but mounted on the left handlebar. Some commentators have argued that this technique offered Doohan an additional advantage in rear brake control, though there was nothing to stop other riders from trying it (and some did, most notably Troy Corser and Miguel DuHamel, neither of whom had restricted use of their right foot).
In 1999 Doohan had another accident, this time in qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix. He again broke his leg in several places and subsequently announced his retirement. He was somewhat unlucky, as his accident rate was far lower than many competitors. For all his time in 500 cc class his chief engineer was Jeremy Burgess, who after his retirement became Valentino Rossi's chief engineer. After his retirement, he worked as a roving adviser to Honda's Grand Prix race effort. At the conclusion of the 2004 season, Doohan and Honda parted company. Mick married his long term partner Selina Sines of 11 years on Friday 21 March 2006, on Hamilton Island. Mick and Selina have two children, Allexis and Jack. Many current generation MotoGP riders consider Mick as an inspiration, including 2007 MotoGP world champion, Casey Stoner.
Formula One
After his success in Grand Prix motorcycle racing he got a chance to test a Formula One racecar, the Williams FW19, at Circuit de Catalunya, Spain, in April 1998. Despite posting lap times similar to his 500 cc Grand Prix bike, he found the car difficult to drive and subsequently bent the car against a guard rail. He also crashed and totalled a Mercedes Benz AMG in Targa Tasmania.
Rollercoaster
Michael Doohan helped design, and was gifted his own rollercoaster at Dreamworld on the Gold Coast, Australia. This is the only known Intamin AG Motorbike Coaster, since others are made by Vekoma and Zamperla.
Grand Prix career statistics
Points system from 1988 to 1992
Position
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Points
20
17
15
13
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
Points system from 1993
Position
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Points
25
20
16
13
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Year
Class
Team
Machine
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
Points
Rank
Wins
1989
500cc
Rothmans Honda
NSR500
JPN
DNF
AUS
8
USA
8
ESP
DNF
NAT
DNF
GER
3
AUT
8
YUG
6
NED
9
BEL
8
FRA
8
GBR
-
SWE
-
CZE
-
BRA
4
81
9th
0
1990
500cc
Rothmans Honda
NSR500
JPN
NC
USA
2
ESP
4
NAT
3
GER
DNF
AUT
3
YUG
4
NED
4
BEL
6
FRA
4
GBR
4
SWE
4
CZE
9
HUN
1
AUS
2
179
3rd
1
1991
500cc
Rothmans Honda
NSR500
JPN
2
AUS
2
USA
2
ESP
1
ITA
1
GER
3
AUT
1
EUR
2
NED
DNF
FRA
2
GBR
3
RSM
3
CZE
2
VDM
2
MAL
3
224
2nd
3
1992
500cc
Rothmans Honda
NSR500
JPN
1
AUS
1
MAL
1
ESP
1
ITA
2
EUR
2
GER
1
NED
DNS
HUN
INJ
FRA
INJ
GBR
INJ
BRA
12
RSA
6
136
2nd
5
1993
500cc
Rothmans Honda
NSR500
AUS
DNF
MAL
4
JPN
7
ESP
4
AUT
2
GER
DNF
NED
2
EUR
2
RSM
1
GBR
DNF
CZE
3
ITA
2
USA
DNF
FIM
INJ
156
4th
1
1994
500cc
HRC Honda
NSR500
AUS
3
MAL
1
JPN
2
ESP
1
AUT
1
GER
1
NED
1
ITA
1
FRA
1
GBR
2
CZE
1
USA
3
ARG
1
EUR
2
317
1st
9
1995
500cc
Repsol Honda
NSR500
AUS
1
MAL
1
JPN
2
ESP
DNF
GER
DNF
ITA
1
NED
1
FRA
1
GBR
1
CZE
2
BRA
2
ARG
1
EUR
4
248
1st
7
1996
500cc
Repsol Honda
NSR500
MAL
5
INA
1
JPN
6
ESP
1
ITA
1
FRA
1
NED
1
GER
2
GBR
1
AUT
2
CZE
2
IMO
1
CAT
2
BRA
1
AUS
8
309
1st
8
1997
500cc
Repsol Honda
NSR500
MAL
1
JPN
1
ESP
2
ITA
1
AUT
1
FRA
1
NED
1
IMO
1
GER
1
BRA
1
GBR
1
CZE
1
CAT
1
INA
2
AUS
DNF
340
1st
12
1998
500cc
Repsol Honda
NSR500
JPN
DNF
MAL
1
ESP
2
ITA
1
FRA
2
MAD
DNF
NED
1
GBR
2
GER
1
CZE
DNF
IMO
1
CAT
1
AUS
1
ARG
1
260
1st
8
1999
500cc
Repsol Honda
NSR500
MAL
4
JPN
2
ESP
-
FRA
-
ITA
-
CAT
-
NED
-
GBR
-
GER
-
CZE
-
IMO
-
VAL
-
AUS
-
RSA
-
BRA
-
ARG
-
33
17th
0
References
^ Michael Doohan career World Superbike statistics at worldsbk.com
^ http://www.motogp.com/en/videos/2009/Behind+the+scenes+with+Casey+Stoner
^ "Teddy Yip's Feast from the East". FORIX.com. http://www.forix.com/8w/theodore.html. Retrieved 2007-03-13.
^ "Moody Blues: Barcelona". Crash.net. http://www.crash.net/feature_print~cid~6~id~7620.htm. Retrieved 2007-03-13.
^ "Rider Statistics - Michael Doohan". MotoGP.com. http://www.motogp.com/en/MotoGP+Legends/profiles/Mick+Doohan. Retrieved 2008-09-04.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Michael Doohan
MickDoohan.com.au - Official site
Preceded by
Kevin Schwantz
500 cc Motorcycle World Champion
1994-1998
Succeeded by
lex Crivill
v d e
500cc/MotoGP Motorcycle World Champions
1949 - L. Graham
1950 - U. Masetti
1951 - G. Duke
1952 - U. Masetti
1953 - G. Duke
1954 - G. Duke
1955 - G. Duke
1956 - J. Surtees
1957 - L. Liberati
1958 - J. Surtees
1959 - J. Surtees
1960 - J. Surtees
1961 - G. Hocking
1962 - M. Hailwood
1963 - M. Hailwood
1964 - M. Hailwood
1965 - M. Hailwood
1966 - G. Agostini
1967 - G. Agostini
1968 - G. Agostini
1969 - G. Agostini
1970 - G. Agostini
1971 - G. Agostini
1972 - G. Agostini
1973 - P. Read
1974 - P. Read
1975 - G. Agostini
1976 - B. Sheene
1977 - B. Sheene
1978 - K. Roberts
1979 - K. Roberts
1980 - K. Roberts
1981 - M. Lucchinelli
1982 - F. Uncini
1983 - F. Spencer
1984 - E. Lawson
1985 - F. Spencer
1986 - E. Lawson
1987 - W. Gardner
1988 - E. Lawson
1989 - E. Lawson
1990 - W. Rainey
1991 - W. Rainey
1992 - W. Rainey
1993 - K. Schwantz
1994 - M. Doohan
1995 - M. Doohan
1996 - M. Doohan
1997 - M. Doohan
1998 - M. Doohan
1999 - . Crivill
2000 - K. Roberts, Jr.
2001 - V. Rossi
2002 - V. Rossi
2003 - V. Rossi
2004 - V. Rossi
2005 - V. Rossi
2006 - N. Hayden
2007 - C. Stoner
2008 - V. Rossi
2009 - V. Rossi
Categories: Australian motorcycle racers | 500cc World Championship riders | Superbike World Championship riders | Motorcycle racers who have driven F1 cars | People from Brisbane | 1965 births | Living people
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