Gary Hocking

Gary Hocking (1961)

Hocking 1961 on MV Agusta at the Dutch TT

Gary Stuart Hocking (born September 30, 1937 in Caerleon , Wales , † December 21, 1962 at the Westmead Circuit near Durban , South Africa ) was a motorcycle and automobile racing driver from Rhodesia , today's Zimbabwe .

In 1961 he became world champion on MV Agusta in the classes up to 350 and up to 500  cm³ . He died on December 21, 1962 while training for a car race in South Africa.

Career

Gary Hocking was born in Caerleon in southeast Wales and grew up in what was then the British Crown Colony of Southern Rhodesia , now Zimbabwe. In his youth he began to ride a motorcycle, first in grass track races and a little later on street courses in Rhodesia and South Africa.

He left Rhodesia in 1958 to race in Europe and was an instant success. Already at his first start in 1958 in the 500 cc class of the motorcycle world championship he achieved sixth place on a Norton at the Dutch TT . Later, at the German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring - Nordschleife , he even finished third behind the MV Agusta factory machines from John Surtees and John Hartle , which was followed by fourth place in Sweden , so that Hocking finished the season in sixth overall.

In the 1959 season , Gary Hocking competed in four different classes of championship races. He started the season with second place in the 350s and third in the 500cc class at the French Grand Prix in Clermont-Ferrand on Norton. At the third round of the season, the German Grand Prix at the Hockenheimring , he also achieved second place in the 350 cm³ class. At the Swedish Grand Prix in Kristianstad , Hocking started in the 250 cc class for the first time on an MZ factory machine with a two-stroke engine and won the race straight away, even though he had only been on four-stroke engines before. In the following race, the Ulster Grand Prix in Northern Ireland , he repeated his victory and was still second in the 125 cc class. At the race at the Sachsenring , which at that time had no World Championship status, he won the 250 and 500 and took second place in the 350 cm³ class. Meanwhile, Hocking had caught the attention of MV Agusta and was signed by the Italians during the season. Nevertheless, Gary Hocking was runner-up in the 250 cc class on MZ this year behind the Italian Carlo Ubbiali .

From the 1960 season onwards , Hocking only competed for MV. He competed in classes up to 125, 250 and 350 cm³. At the legendary Tourist Trophy on the Isle of Man , he won the 250cc class, and came second in the 125 cc class, behind Carlo Ubbiali. Gary Hocking completed a total of twelve World Championship races, won four of them and made it onto the podium ten times. In all three classes in which he competed, he was runner-up that year.

After John Surtees resigned at the end of the 1960 season, Gary Hocking became the new number one at MV Agusta for the 1961 season . He managed to imitate his predecessor Surtees and win both the 350 and the 500 world championship title. In the half-liter class, he won seven of eight World Championship races in which he had competed; In the 350 cm³ class, Hocking won four times in five participations. In the race at the Sachsenring, which was part of the World Championship for the first time this year, Hocking again scored two victories. During the season, the British Mike Hailwood attracted attention - especially with three victories in the Tourist Trophy. Therefore, at the Grand Prix of Nations in Monza , he got a MV Agusta factory machine for the first time and became a team mate of Gary Hocking. This seemed disadvantageous to the Rhodesian, as Hailwood's father sponsored the team and thus many decisions were made in favor of the British.

The 1962 season began with the TT on the Isle of Man. Gary Hocking suffered a serious fall during training, in which he got away with several cuts and bruises. Against the advice of the doctors, he started the races and had one of the most exciting duels in the history of the Tourist Trophy in the 350 cm³ class with Hailwood. The Briton eventually won while Hocking finished second with a technical problem. The race was overshadowed by the death of Australian Tom Phillis , who was a good friend of Hocking's. Phillis fell heavily in the second lap, lying in third place, and succumbed to the consequences of the accident. Although Hocking was deeply affected by the death of his friend, he started the 500 cc race and won. After that, however, he resigned from motorcycle racing and announced his commitment to MV Agusta with the words: "I can no longer see how people kill themselves with motorcycles!"

In his short career he had two world titles, 19 wins and 33 podium finishes.

However, Gary Hocking didn't last long without racing and decided to race because he thought it was safer. It started as early as August 1962 and immediately took fourth place when it was used for the first time with a Lotus - Climax .

On December 21, 1962, Gary Hocking had a fatal accident while training for the Natal Grand Prix at the Westmead Circuit in Natal near Durban in South Africa . After losing control of his car, a Lotus 24 , he strayed off the road, rolled over several times, and finally hit a tree. Gary Hocking died on the way to hospital at the age of only 25. It was later speculated that the cause of the accident could not have been a driving mistake, as assumed, but an occurring renal colic .

Representatives of the Rhodesian state attended the funeral in his birthplace in Wales. The Rhodesian Prime Minister also sent his deepest condolences in a letter.

statistics

title

• 1960 - South African 500cc champion
• 1961 - 350 cm³ world champion on MV Agusta
• 1961 - 500 cc world champion on MV Agusta
• 19 Grand Prix victories

Isle of Man TT victories

year	class	machine	Average speed
1960	Lightweight (250 cm³)	MV Agusta	93.64  mph (150.7  km / h )
1962	Senior (500 cm³)	MV Agusta	103.51 mph (166.58 km / h)

In the motorcycle world championship

season	class	Result	machine	Victories
1958	500 cc	6th	Norton	0
1959	125 cc	9.	MZ	0
	250 cc	2.	MZ	2
	350 cc	4th	Norton	0
	500 cc	5.	Norton	0
1960	125 cc	2.	MV Agusta	0
	250 cc	2.	MV Agusta	2
	350 cc	2.	MV Agusta	2
1961	250 cc	8th.	MV Agusta	1
	350 cc	World Champion	MV Agusta	4th
	500 cc	World Champion	MV Agusta	7th
1962	350 cc	8th.	MV Agusta	0
	500 cc	5.	MV Agusta	1

References

Web links

Commons : Gary Hocking  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Article about Gary Hocking at eggersdorfer.info
• Article about Gary Hocking (English)
• Gary Hocking on the motorcycle world championship official website.
• Gary Hocking on the Isle of Man TT official website.
• Gary Hocking at motorsportmemorial.org (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ SOUTH AFRICAN CHAMPIONS. (PDF) cdn.entelectonline.co.za, accessed on December 15, 2013 (English).