MY BEST ENEMY
Kenny Roberts landed in Europe to win, not to participate. Since it was 1978, he set his sights on Barry Sheene. The two-year defending champion.
The story is well known-Kenny won back in his debut, then paved the way for a true American landing in the world championship-but today King Kenny pays tribute to his opponent: “If it hadn’t been for Barry Sheene, my world championships would not have meant as much. And when he died, I lost my rival. Yes, Barry Sheene was my opponent. He was really a great character: he was one of the greats of the sport. And we all miss him, not just me.”
What was your relationship with Barry?
“Friends, as there was mutual respect and when we were together we were fine. Then, of course, we were ambitious young men playing for the 500 World Championship title, so Barry was one of my biggest rivals, and at times we clashed. We also became friends, though. I’ll say more: often, even when we were riders, it happened that Barry and I would get together for dinner somewhere and they were always great evenings.”
These are stories of other times.
“When I was planning the World Series, between 1979 and 1980, Barry was one of the first people I talked to and one of the few who always supported me. He conducted himself with great honesty. Because Barry Sheene always did what he said he was going to do.”
Even when he was attacking you, though.
“Of course! We had very close races, with fierce duels, but when we were on the track there was never anyone I trusted more.”
You have made jokes about it.
“He knew how to provoke me and I knew how to respond to him, so we played that game very well, and the whole environment benefited from that. Because our sports rivalry raised the level of competition, but also the popularity of the sport.” On March 10, 2003, Kenny Roberts learned the news of Barry Sheene’s passing while at Daytona with his second son Kurtis engaged in the 200-mile race. “I was shocked, annihilated, speechless. I fell into a great sadness. I had talked to Barry about ten days before: he had confided in me that only a miracle could save him. but I, even though I knew that a terrible thing would happen, deep inside I hoped that miracle would happen. I wanted to believe it, just as others wanted to believe it, too.”
It had all started in the previous summer.
“In the summer of 2002 we were in England, for the Grand Prix. Barry said he had something in his throat and was going for tests. He didn’t go into any more details. At the next race, in the Czech Republic, we learned in the paddock that he had cancer. So I called Barry, talked to him a little bit and asked him if there was anything I could do for him. He told me that maybe there were special drugs in Mexico that he could use for cancer and that maybe I could go there and get them for him. For me, who lived in California, Mexico was much closer. Barry did not want to have surgery because the operation would be very heavy and invasive, but there was no guarantee that they would be able to get rid of all the cancer. Barry wanted to attack the cancer in a way other than surgery and chemotherapy. I talked to a doctor friend of mine about it. He said, “Man, follow the science. Yes, one person can be cured with herbs, but the next 3,000 die.” I told Barry that, but he was determined to do it his way. I talked to him often over the next few months. But the last time I called his sister, she told me that Barry wasn’t talking anymore and that it wouldn’t be long before he was gone.”
THE REVOLUTIONARY
Kenny Roberts is simply the greatest motorcycle racer the United States of America has ever produced. Because he dominated the scene in America when dirt track was a big thing and then he turned the World 500 class upside down, bringing a new riding technique and a different approach to the relationship between riders and organizers at the time. There were many riders protesting, in Europe, but it took a different character from another world to shake things up. Exactly, it took The Martian. “There are still a lot of people who call me that, over there,” says this 72-year-old gentleman (born Dec. 31, 1951) today, who occupies a pivotal role in the history of American, as well as world, motorcycling. Kenny Roberts carved a furrow: history, riding technique, mentality changed with his arrival. His revolt to improve conditions for riders and tracks undoubtedly points to him as a revolutionary. When he landed in the World Championship, he and Sheene immediately rose to another level. They came to study each other so well that they even considered themselves opponents to be trusted. “We appreciated each other’s abilities. Obviously each of us wanted to win, but we had great respect for each other. He felt safe when he was in a fight with me, I felt safe with him. That was no small thing in the 1970s. We often had the same pace, sometimes the track was better suited to my riding style and other tracks were better suited to his, but in any case I almost always had to push to the limit to fight with him. Also because Barry in addition to being fast was also very smart.”
A rivalry that helped improve both of them.
“Barry was great because he had the right mix of intelligence, speed and cunning. He had the media in his hand; in this he was unmatched. In fact I didn’t want to get into a verbal confrontation with him, because it would have killed me. He would provoke with words, make jokes and big speeches. I would simply tell him, “Let’s decide on the track.” It was a way to 039cut the discussion, because I was never that witty while he was perfect.”
It was actually different in the race.
“I had to find ways to challenge him. He at first was not impressed by my riding technique, but by my mentality. Because my approach to the race was opposite to his: I didn’t study the track too much, I didn’t want to start slow and then manage the pace. I would start strong right away and then see what happened.”
It was also the right time to create emphasis around motorsport.
“There were years in that era that cannot be replicated. Also because it was a different era. Barry Sheene was twice the sportsman of the year in Britain-I mean number one among all British sportsmen. In the United States it was impossible for a motorcycle racer to reach this level of popularity. I remember often saying, “My God, how famous is this “guy?!” Barry was the superstar, the good guy, the guy who was always smiling, the playboy with the Rolls Royce and the helicopter, the castle outside London. I was the tough guy, the bad guy, a Modesto boy driving an RV. It was a big difference.”
In early 1978 Barry Sheene thought you were not a threat. Did you hear him say that?
“Oh yes, of course. He said I was a good driver, but he dismissed it by saying I wouldn’t be a threat. He didn’t say, “I can fight him,” “I can beat him…” But I think that hurt him more than me. Because when I started to win the pressure on him multiplied, because of how popular he was, so the pressure that England put on him became a way to bring him down. The English press began to put a lot of pressure on him. They did not resent him, however, they wrote what they saw: namely, that I beat him.”
CONTINUED ON SLICK #20