SUZUKI QUEEN OF HEARTS. AND ALSO OF MARKETING
Once upon a time, Suzuki dictated the rules of marketing in the premier Grand Prix class.
It happened in the mid-1970s and early 1980s. It may seem strange when one thinks of recent events in MotoGP, where Hamamatsu has never taken advantage of the resounding coincidence-the title win exactly in the company’s centennial year-and yet it is so. In the 1970s, Hamamatsu set out not only to win with the stars, but also to capture a market that was huge and very rich at the time: the private market. And they threw themselves into it.
The secret was in the idea: the RG500 project was born from the perfect interpretation of its time. So in Suzuki they invented a system that consisted of mass-producing racing motorcycles, building around them a proper business system. During that time Suzuki won 11 world titles in the premier class (the 500), monopolizing the burgeoning private rider market at a time when with a 2-stroke 500 you could race anywhere: from the world championship to national championships (in Europe, the U.S., Japan, Australia) and additionally in the large and numerous international events. Considering the average attendance of 60 riders per event, one can well understand what a turnover it was.
Of course, we are narrating events that are half a century away from today’s MotoGP, so you have to think differently: today only 22 motorcycles run – in the whole world! – practically all official ones. But in the 1970s, money was also made in the smaller classes: for example, Yamaha was queen of the 125 and 250, but in the 500, Suzuki left it much less room. In fact, when Honda became aware of the business generated by the private world, it immediately copied Suzuki’s concept (it, too, set out to build official bikes similar to the standard ones) even though there we were already in the 1980s.
WINNING RECIPE
So at the beginning of the 1970s the managers in Hamamatsu understood that the secret of the RG Four Square project would be effectiveness, combined with affordability. They had to design a motorcycle friendly in use by riders of all levels and experience, then also simple in management (set up easy to find in all conditions and circuits, spare parts available even used, little technical assistance, etc.). And then it had to be robust enough so as not to swoon private individuals with the cost of spare parts. Finally, it had to be economical in purchase.
Here, the Hamamatsu racing department did it. The RG500 proved to be a remarkably versatile motorcycle: it was not impressive in anything, but overall it was often the best of all. So mass production was arranged (even though they were racing bikes), taking advantage of the capacity of a company that was already an industry giant. Then a full-scale commercial operation was planned: the RG could be sold anywhere, that is, on every Continent, through a widespread sales network (Suzuki dealers were used), at affordable prices.
HOW TO RECOVER MONEY
Doing the necessary calculations, regarding the various conversions among the many currencies of the time, as well as the energy and monetary crises typical of the 1970s, it can be said that the RG 500 was sold at the cost of what on today’s market would be about 12,000 euros (a satellite MotoGP bike costs about 2 million euros) with technical specifications similar to those of the official bikes.
Clearly the grid was filled with RGs, all over the world, which is why the Manufacturers’ title was virtually assured for Suzuki. Then, of course the factory bikes had something more. But they were not different bikes. For example: in its last version, the difference between the standard RG (RGA) and the official RG (RGB) lay in some of the materials used for the fasteners: the official ones adopted titanium and magnesium bolts and plates, on the factory version steel and aluminum were used. The chassis and engine were almost identical. It was a brilliant insight, because the premier class at that time really needed good bikes at affordable prices. In fact, we were seeing many more private than factory bikes at the start. Here, because the queen of that market was Suzuki, the Hamamatsu racing department could manage its resources well.
Suzuki did not have the budgets of Yamaha (let alone Honda) so it found a good way to recover money to continue technical development.
SHE ALONE WON
The RG500 project boasts a perhaps inconspicuous but nonetheless important record: it is the only motorcycle that has won the 500 world title with the 4-cylinder squared engine. Indeed, of titles it has won 11: four “Riders” (2 with Sheene, one with Lucchinelli, one with Uncini) and 7 “Manufacturers”. For the House of Hamamatsu, it was a golden age that it has never known again. That is, not like that.
By the way, this epic ended with the Italians: namely Lucchinelli and Uncini, supported by Team Gallina. These were the last triumphs, before the arrival of the RGV. By the time Suzuki won the other two Rider titles in the 500 – with Schwantz in 1993 and Kenny Roberts Jr. in 2000 – the engine had changed: it had become a four-cylinder V-engine. Not only that: in those victorious seasons the Constructors’ title went to Yamaha. Similarly, when Joan Mir won the MotoGP title in 2020 with an “inline four,” the Constructors’ title went to Ducati.
SHEENE VS SCHWANTZ
History says it, as well as statistics: the RG500 and Barry Sheene gave Suzuki the most brilliant period in its entire racing history. Not only because this company with the British rider won the first 500 world title. It was also a matter of image. The Sheene era was a different period from that of, for example, Kevin Schwantz, when the Japanese manufacturer returned to the top not only in terms of results but also as an image.
There are at least three differences between the two periods. First, Barry Sheene won two consecutive world titles, while Schwantz only one; and then, in the first era Suzuki won as many as 7 Manufacturers’ world titles, while in the Schwantz era it never happened; finally, in the 1970s and for half of the 1980s Suzuki was the queen of private riders.
CONTINUED ON SLICK20