André Malherbe

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Wikipedia

André Malherbe
Malherbe in 1974 aboard a 125cc Zündapp
NationalityBelgian
Born(1956-03-21)21 March 1956
Huy, Belgium
Died24 November 2022(2022-11-24) (aged 66)
Liège, Belgium
Motocross career
Years active1975–1986
TeamsZündapp, KTM, Honda
Championships500cc - 1980, 1981, 1984
Wins39

André Malherbe (21 March 1956 – 24 November 2022) was a Belgian professional Grand Prix motocross racer. He competed in the Motocross World Championships from 1975 to 1986, most prominently as a member of the Honda factory racing team where he won three FIM 500cc Motocross World Championships. In 1984, Malherbe was named the recipient of the Belgian National Sports Merit Award.

Racing career

Early racing

Born in Huy, the son of a motorcycle dealer, Malherbe began racing at an early age and earned his racing licence in 1973. He rode a Zündapp to win the 1973 FIM 125cc European motocross championship, and repeated as champion in 1974.[1][2][3] In 1975, the FIM upgraded the 125cc European Championship to World Championship status. Despite winning two consecutive 125cc European titles, Malherbe failed to attract attention from larger motorcycle manufacturers so he continued to compete aboard a Zündapp in the 125cc class.[4] He suffered an injury early in the year which forced him miss much of the season, yet still finished the year ranked seventh in the 1975 125cc World Championship.[5]

KTM team member

In 1976 Malherbe signed a contract to race in the 250cc World Championship for the Belgian KTM importer and Grand Prix motocross racer Jaak van Velthoven.[4][5] He won the first overall victory of his career at the 1977 250cc West German Grand Prix and, ended the season completing a KTM sweep of the 1977 250cc World Championship behind his Russian KTM teammates Gennady Moiseyev and Vladimir Kavinov.[5][6] Malherbe ended the year helping the Belgian team win the 1977 500cc Motocross des Nations event held in Cognac, France and the 1977 250cc Trophée des Nations event in Markelo, Holland.[7][8]

KTM entered Malherbe into the 500cc World Championship for the 1978 season. Malherbe was in fourth place in the championship after the first five rounds before the KTM factory suffered supply chain issues and struggled to provide Malherbe with enough spare parts as he finished the season as the highest scoring KTM rider in sixth place.[4][9]

Honda factory team

Malherbe joined the Honda HRC factory racing team for the 1979 season to replace Brad Lackey who left to join the Kawasaki factory team.[4][5] He won the final two Grand Prix races of the year and ended the season in third-place just one point behind runner up Gerrit Wolsink (Suzuki) as his Honda teammate Graham Noyce claimed the 500cc World Championship.[5][10] He was a member of the Belgian team that won the 1979 Motocross des Nations event in Vantaa, Finland.[11]

Malherbe faced a strong field of competitors in the 1980 season including the defending champion Noyce, five-time World Champion De Coster (Honda), Lackey (Kawasaki) and the 1979 250cc World Champion Håkan Carlqvist (Yamaha) as well as talented newcomer André Vromans (Yamaha). The season was dominated by Malherbe and Lackey as the two riders traded the top two positions in the points standing several times during a season-long battle for the 500cc World Championship. The championship wasn't decided until the final race of the year in Luxembourg with Malherbe holding a slim one-point lead in the championship.[4][5] Lackey suffered two crashes in Luxembourg which allowed Malherbe to win the world championship with Lackey finishing in second place.[4][5][12] Malherbe was also the top individual points scorer at the 1980 Motocross des Nations event where he led the Belgian team to victory.[13]

Malherbe fought another season-long duel in 1981, this time with his Honda teammate Noyce who had missed most of the 1980 season with a broken leg.[4][5][12] As in 1980, the championship wasn't decided until the final race in Luxembourg where Malherbe would prevail to score his second consecutive World Championship.[4][5][12] The 1982 season saw a revival of Malherbe's rivalry with Lackey who was now riding for the Suzuki factory team.[4][5] Malherbe was trailing points leader Lackey at mid-season by three-points but then suffered a broken leg at the 500cc United States Grand Prix which forced him to miss the rest of the season.[4][5]

In the 1983 500cc World Championship, Malherbe's main competitors were his Honda teammate Noyce and the 1979 250cc World Champion Håkan Carlqvist riding for the Yamaha factory team.[4][5] Noyce faded in the second half of the season as Malherbe and Carlqvist continued to battle back and forth until the final race of the year in Holland where Carlqvist prevailed to win the World Championship by seven points over Malherbe.[4][5]

The 1984 500cc Motocross World Championship featured one of the most talented field of competitors of the 1980s.[14] Besides having to compete against the defending champion Carlqvist and the 1983 250cc World Champion Georges Jobé (Kawasaki), he also had to contend with Noyce and his new Honda teammates David Thorpe and Eric Geboers.[15] The 1984 500cc championship is prominent for featuring all three of the previous year's world champions – Carlqvist (500cc), Jobé (250cc) and Geboers (125cc).[14] Thorpe won the first 500cc Grand Prix race of his career at the 1984 500cc Swedish Grand Prix to take the championship points lead however, he would be overtaken by Malherbe and Jobé.[15] Malherbe scored points consistently, finishing on the podium in eight of the twelve rounds to claim his third and final World Championship ahead of Jobé.[5][16] Thorpe showed he was a future championship contender by winning the final three Grand Prix races of the year.[15]

The 1985 500cc Motocross World Championship was dominated by the Honda teammates Malherbe and Thorpe. Despite Malherbe winning five Grand Prix races, Thorpe was able to finish on the podium in all twelve Grand Prix races to claim his first 500cc Motocross World Championship ahead of Malherbe in second place and their Honda teammate Geboers in third place.[4][5] The two competitors won 18 of the 24 rounds and eight of the 12 Grand Prix races.[5]

The 1986 500cc Motocross World Championship saw the resumption of the rivalry between Malherbe and his Honda teammates Thorpe and Geboers as well as Jobé in a season-long battle that wasn't decided until the final round.[5][15] Entering the final round in Luxembourg, the four competitors were separated by only 20 points with Thorpe in first place holding a three-point lead over Malherbe.[15] Thorpe was able to score a second-place finish behind Jobé to clinch his second consecutive World Championship just 5 points ahead of Malherbe. Malherbe's victory at the 1986 500cc Canadian Grand Prix would mark the final victory of his motocross racing career.[17] By the end of 1986, his relationship with the Honda team was at a low ebb, he had grown weary of motocross racing and made the decision to retire.[4] He competed in his final World Championship race at the 1986 500cc Luxembourg Grand Prix at the age of 30.[17]

Career overview

Six times between 1980 and 1986, Malherbe went into the final race of the year with a mathematical chance of winning the 500cc world championship.[5] He won three 500cc motocross world titles (1980, 1981, 1984) and was a three-time Vice Champion (1983, 1985, 1986). Malherbe won 72 individual heat races and 39 Grand Prix victories during his world championship career and also won four Belgian motocross national championships (1972, 1977, 1983, 1985).[17] He was a member of two victorious Belgian Trophée des Nations teams (1977, 1980), and three victorious Belgian Motocross des Nations teams (1977, 1979, 1980).[17] At the time of his retirement, Malherbe's 39 Grand Prix race victories placed him fourth on the all-time winners list.[18][19]

Later life

After his motocross career ended, he competed in auto racing. He drove in the French Formula Three championship with a best result being a 5th place at Spa-Francorchamps.[4] He competed in the 1987 Spa 24 Hour round of the World Touring Car Championship.[20] He then began to compete in rally raids riding for the French Yamaha importer, Sonauto.[4] During the 1988 Paris–Dakar Rally while racing his motorcycle in the Algerian desert near Tamanrasset, he crashed and suffered a spinal cord injury.[4] His remote location delayed medical assistance allowing a hematoma to form after the vertebral fracture leaving him a quadriplegic for the remainder of his life.[4] He was supported with his disabilities by a tight-knit group of family and friends.[4]

Malherbe died on 24 November 2022 at Liège hospital, Belgium, at the age of 66.[18][21][22]

Motocross Grand Prix Results

Points system from 1969 to 1983:

Position 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Points 15 12 10 8 6 5 4 3 2 1

Points system from 1984:

Position  1st   2nd   3rd   4th   5th   6th   7th   8th   9th   10th   11th   12th   13th   14th   15th 
Points 20 17 15 13 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Denotes European motocross championship only.
Year Class Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Pos Pts
R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2
1973 125cc Zündapp FRA
1		 FRA
2		 GER
2		 GER
-		 AUT
2		 AUT
-		 POR
1		 POR
1		 ESP
1		 ESP
1		 SM
3		 SM
2		 CH
-		 CH
-		 ITA
1		 ITA
1		 ESP
1		 YUG
1		 YUG
2		 1st 163
1974 125cc Zündapp ITA
2		 ITA
1		 FRA
1		 FRA
1		 CH
5		 CH
2		 GER
-		 GER
3		 BEL
1		 BEL
1		 NED
3		 NED
1		 SWE
1		 SWE
1		 FIN
1		 FIN
1		 YUG
1		 YUG
-		 POL
-		 POL
-		 AUT
-		 AUT
-		 CZE
1		 CZE
1		 ESP
-		 ESP
-		 USA
-		 USA
-		 UK
-		 UK
-		 1st 229
1975 125cc Zündapp FRA
2		 FRA
-		 UK
2		 UK
2		 YUG
4		 YUG
-		 SWE
2		 SWE
-		 NED
-		 NED
-		 POL
-		 POL
-		 GER
-		 GER
-		 CZE
-		 CZE
-		 USA
-		 USA
-		 CAN
-		 CAN
-		 ESP
-		 ESP
-		 BEL
6		 BEL
4		 7th 69
1976 250cc KTM ESP
-		 ESP
-		 BEL
-		 BEL
-		 CZE
-		 CZE
-		 POL
-		 POL
-		 USR
-		 USR
-		 YUG
-		 YUG
7		 ITA
5		 ITA
5		 FRA
-		 FRA
-		 UK
9		 UK
6		 GER
3		 GER
-		 NED
-		 NED
-		 SWE
-		 SWE
-		 14th 33
1977 250cc KTM ESP
7		 ESP
4		 CH
-		 CH
-		 BEL
3		 BEL
8		 CZE
-		 CZE
7		 ITA
-		 ITA
7		 AUT
4		 AUT
3		 USR
6		 USR
4		 YUG
-		 YUG
2		 GER
3		 GER
2		 UK
-		 UK
2		 SWE
5		 SWE
3		 FIN
2		 FIN
2		 3rd 150
1978 500cc KTM CH
7		 CH
5		 AUT
6		 AUT
5		 FRA
3		 FRA
6		 DEN
5		 DEN
5		 FIN
3		 FIN
4		 SWE
-		 SWE
-		 USA
-		 USA
4		 ITA
4		 ITA
-		 UK
6		 UK
-		 BEL
5		 BEL
9		 LUX
7		 LUX
4		 NED
9		 NED
-		 6th 109
1979 500cc Honda AUT
6		 AUT
-		 FRA
5		 FRA
2		 SWE
6		 SWE
-		 ITA
5		 ITA
4		 USA
-		 USA
-		 CAN
5		 CAN
4		 GER
7		 GER
1		 UK
6		 UK
2		 CH
3		 CH
2		 NED
-		 NED
4		 BEL
2		 BEL
1		 LUX
2		 LUX
1		 3rd 176
1980 500cc Honda CH
1		 CH
1		 AUT
8		 AUT
5		 FRA
1		 FRA
1		 SWE
3		 SWE
2		 FIN
4		 FIN
1		 ITA
2		 ITA
1		 NED
2		 NED
7		 USA
-		 USA
-		 CAN
3		 CAN
1		 GER
-		 GER
8		 BEL
1		 BEL
1		 LUX
3		 LUX
3		 1st 235
1981 500cc Honda AUT
1		 AUT
1		 CH
4		 CH
2		 FIN
2		 FIN
2		 SWE
1		 SWE
-		 ITA
3		 ITA
1		 FRA
-		 FRA
3		 USA
-		 USA
2		 UK
-		 UK
7		 NED
2		 NED
2		 CZE
5		 CZE
4		 BEL
5		 BEL
1		 LUX
2		 LUX
8		 1st 214
1982 500cc Honda FRA
1		 FRA
1		 NED
-		 NED
-		 SWE
5		 SWE
2		 FIN
4		 FIN
-		 AUT
-		 AUT
4		 ITA
1		 ITA
1		 GER
2		 GER
1		 USA
-		 USA
-		 CAN
-		 CAN
-		 UK
-		 UK
-		 BEL
-		 BEL
-		 LUX
-		 LUX
-		 5th 121
1983 500cc Honda CH
1		 CH
2		 AUT
2		 AUT
3		 GER
1		 GER
1		 SWE
5		 SWE
7		 FIN
5		 FIN
1		 ITA
6		 ITA
1		 USA
6		 USA
5		 FRA
2		 FRA
1		 UK
3		 UK
2		 BEL
5		 BEL
1		 SM
1		 SM
7		 NED
4		 NED
1		 2nd 253
1984 500cc Honda AUT
7		 AUT
7		 CH
1		 CH
3		 ESP
1		 ESP
1		 FRA
1		 FRA
1		 SWE
1		 SWE
10		 GER
1		 GER
2		 NED
2		 NED
2		 USA
2		 USA
4		 CAN
2		 CAN
2		 UK
5		 UK
4		 BEL
2		 BEL
3		 ITA
4		 ITA
5		 1st 370
1985 500cc Honda AUT
1		 AUT
1		 FRA
2		 FRA
-		 SWE
4		 SWE
3		 FIN
1		 FIN
2		 ITA
-		 ITA
2		 ESP
1		 ESP
1		 NED
1		 NED
4		 USA
6		 USA
6		 UK
2		 UK
1		 BEL
1		 BEL
2		 LUX
2		 LUX
1		 CH
3		 CH
1		 2nd 378
1986 500cc Honda CH
-		 CH
-		 AUT
3		 AUT
1		 NED
4		 NED
2		 SWE
6		 SWE
2		 FIN
-		 FIN
4		 GER
1		 GER
3		 CAN
3		 CAN
1		 USA
5		 USA
4		 FRA
3		 FRA
4		 UK
5		 UK
7		 BEL
3		 BEL
3		 LUX
2		 LUX
2		 2nd 311
Sources:[23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][16][34][35]

References

  1. ↑ "Classic Motocross Iron: Zundapp MC125". motocrossactionmag.com. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  2. ↑ "1973 125cc European motocross championship final standings". memotocross.fr. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  3. ↑ "1974 125cc European motocross championship final standings". memotocross.fr. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 "André Malherbe: a life full of struggle". mxmag.net. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 "Jack Burnicle looks back at Andre Malherbe's remarkable career". dirtbikerider.com. 19 November 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
  6. ↑ "1977 250cc motocross world championship final standings". memotocross.fr. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  7. ↑ "1977 Motocross des Nations classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
  8. ↑ "1977 Trophée des Nations classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
  9. ↑ "1978 500cc motocross world championship final standings". memotocross.fr. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  10. ↑ "1979 500cc motocross world championship final standings". memotocross.fr. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  11. ↑ "1979 Motocross des Nations classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
  12. 1 2 3 Mueller, Tom (1 June 1982). "Malherbe Aims For Number 3". Cycle World. Retrieved 3 October 2025.
  13. ↑ "1980 Motocross des Nations classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
  14. 1 2 "Georges Jobé: A Legendary Leap". mxgp.com. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 "My Ride, My Life: Dave Thorpe". Honda Racing. 3 August 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2025.
  16. 1 2 "1984 500cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  17. 1 2 3 4 "André Malherbe career statistics" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 22 April 2025.
  18. 1 2 "André Malherbe, Three-Time Motocross World Champion, Dies at 66". cyclenews.com. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
  19. ↑ www.motorsport-aktuell.com Archived 13 January 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  20. ↑ "André Malherbe results". racingsportscars.com. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  21. ↑ "GODSPEED! ANDRE MALHERBE (1956-2022)". motocrossactionmag.com. 26 November 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
  22. ↑ "André Malherbe at Motorsport Memorial". motorsportmemorial.org. Retrieved 26 September 2025.
  23. ↑ "1973 125cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  24. ↑ "1974 125cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  25. ↑ "1975 125cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  26. ↑ "1976 250cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  27. ↑ "1977 250cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  28. ↑ "1978 500cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  29. ↑ "1979 500cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  30. ↑ "1980 500cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  31. ↑ "1981 500cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  32. ↑ "1982 500cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  33. ↑ "1983 500cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  34. ↑ "1985 500cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  35. ↑ "1986 500cc motocross world championship race classifications" (PDF). memotocross.fr. Retrieved 5 September 2025.